Fox Blood
by Mind of a Demon
Summary: Naruto is manipulated by the Kyuubi while in a state of turmoil and now has to face the world as the demon he spent his life proving he wasn't. KyuuNaruKyuu, Yaoi, M-preg, Rape. Starts with the rival fight. Full summary inside. First story.
1. No Quarter

Welcome to the twisted, warped, and demented Mind of A Demon. Let us see what this imagination of mine can conjure up. I'll start off slow then get to the good stuff. I don't own Naruto, a Japanese genius does. Thank you to Acaykath for Beta reading my story.

Fox Blood

A momentary lapse in Naruto's judgement leads him to make a decision on the rim unconsciousness that is his human end. Naruto is manipulated by the Kyuubi in his moment of turmoil and now has to face the world that he worked to make respect him, as a demon. KyuuNaruKyuu, Yaoi, M-preg, Rape. Starts with the rival fight.

"Speech"

"**Kyuubi's Speech" **As well as other demonic voices.

_Thoughts_

_**Kyuubi's Thoughts**_

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Chapter One: No Quarter

_They choose the path where no-one goes.  
They hold no quarter, they hold no quarter.  
Walking side by side with death  
The devil mocks their every step  
The snow drives back the foot thats slow  
The dogs of doom are howling more_

_No Quarter, Led Zeppelin, Houses of The Holy. _

_He is really trying to kill me. He is after my head this time. This is no game. He is not playing anymore. _Naruto came to this realization in his mind as he drifted to the surface of the water. _This is so confusing. I don't understand why._

Deep in Naruto's mind scape, his figure, unknowingly to him, was being beckoned to the cage that housed an incomprehensible power. His confusion was all that the demon of deity power needed to complete what he desired. Naruto's figure now stood in front of the cage that reached up into darkness; the top of the jail could not be seen.

"**Kit, smear your blood on the seal."** The Kyuubi's voice said in a soothing, non-alerting tone, trying not to distract his jailer from his mental ramblings.

Naruto's figure was mumbling in confusion as he bit his thumb and then smeared his blood across the seal. The blood on the seal glittered a bright red, then soaked into the seal. The beast inside the cage felt his plan beginning to work. Naruto's blood began to mix with his.

_**Seeing as we don't want Naruto's little friend to kill him**__**,**__** I'll make him rip it in half so when the time is right I can finish what is to be done, **_the demon thought. "**Kit, tear half the seal off****,****"** he again spoke in the calming tone, a little faster because Naruto was beginning to come to terms with what was taking place.

Naruto grasped the seal and tore it in half. _**The blood is mixed. The seal is weak. Now to just wait, **_the Kyuubi thought.

It seemed as if Naruto had just come back to reality. He was no longer rambling about Sasuke's betrayal. His figure looked at the seal, then the blood red eyes that bore into his own. Then, in a flash of light, it was gone.

"**How you have wronged your son Fourth?**** You will never see him where you are****,****" **The Kyuubi said to no one.

Naruto came down from his turmoil high and became aware of what was happening as he reached the the surface of the water. Climbing out, he saw Sasuke doing the same. He composed himself and as a last minute reassurance spoke. "I will bring you back, teme. I promised, and I never go back on my word. Thats my Ni—" Naruto's ranting was cut off.

"'Nindo, my ninja way.' Naruto you're so naïve," Sasuke said in a bored, playing tone, "They say that when two great ninjas fight, they don't need to speak. They can read each others movements," Sasuke spoke, stalling to give himself time to come up with a plan to kill Naruto. _That jutsu of his can counter my chidori. I'll have to find a way of hitting him with my chidori before he can use that technique. I'll use some of my katon ninjutsu and superior taijutsu to make an opening__,__ then I'll ram it through his chest. Let's test this curse mark and the sharingan together._

Just as Sasuke was coming to this decision Naruto was feeling queazy. _I shouldn't feel like this__;__ I've had worse falls. This is so wierd._ "Ugh!" Naruto spat out some blood. The taste on his tongue foreign and yet welcome. _Blood doesn't taste like this. What's wrong with me?_ Sasuke began forming hand signs and then brought his fingers to his mouth and, after a moment, blew a few large fireballs at Naruto. In his state, Naruto barely managed to avoid the fireballs.

Sasuke, after releasing the justu, activated his curse mark. The ominous marks glowed a feral orange and flowed over his ivory skin. Not a moment later, he took off to finish his attack on Naruto. He made his way behind Naruto a little to easily, noticing the blood around said boy's mouth but ignoring it, and brought his arms down on Naruto grabbing him as said boy flew through the air to avoid the fireballs. After Sasuke kicked him viciously in the side of the head, Naruto was sent gliding across the water.

Naruto, feeling weaker by the moment, began to hear birds chirping. He looked up into Sasuke's blood red eyes as Sasuke grabbed him none to gently by the neck and hoisted him up in the air. "Your a pathetic ninja Naruto. You will never be Hokage," Sasuke said in almost a whisper.

_Why can't I move? What's wrong with me? I feel so sick, but this blood__– _Naruto was torn from his thoughts by Sasuke's chidori being rammed through his chest. The blood flowed even more from his mouth. _Why does my blood taste so…good? _ It was the last thought on Naruto's mind as he fell into unconsciousness.

Sasuke removed his hand from Naruto's punctured and bloodied chest, letting his limp body fall into the water. It began to rain and Sasuke could feel Kakashi's chakra signature coming closer. He looked down on Naruto as his body began to submerge. The last ray of sun from the rolling clouds was on Naruto's face before it faded. Sasuke removed his headband and dropped it on Naruto before leaving. He was gone before a small red glow formed around Naruto's wound and the water above bumbled as if being boiled. The red glow faded, leaving Naruto's fatal wound gone without even the slightest scar.

Kakashi was at cliff's edge not a moment later with Pakkun by his side. Peeking over the ledge, he saw something orange beneath the water. He, in a panicked dash, ran over the cliffs edge using chakra to stay on the wall as he headed for the faint color beneath the water. He leapt out into the middle of the river and dove for Naruto's body. He brought Naruto's body to the surface and checked for a pulse and respiration. There was a pulse which was surprisingly strong, but Naruto's breaths were raspy and faint. The boy's hair was matted with bits of blood, but the hole in his jump suit was confusing Kakashi. He checked the boy over for serious injuries, but could not finding any.

"Can you still track Sasuke's scent?" Kakashi asked his canine companion who was sitting patiently by his side.

"Sorry, but the rain has washed his scent away," Pakkun replied, "I can hardly smell anything except fish, blood, and wet dog."

"Alright. Well, Naruto seems fine. You can go. There is not much more that can be done." Pakun disappeared in a puff of smoke as Kakashi picked up Naruto's limp body. He wrapped Naruto's arms around his neck and piggy backed him back to Konoha.

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Naruto woke up in a hospital bed feeling rather chipper and surprised that he was there at all. _He punctured my heart. How am I still alive? What's going on? _Looking around the white room, he noticed his clothes on a chair in the corner. He got up and quickly changed, getting ready to leave. The hole in his jumpsuit reminded Naruto of the strangness of him being there. He let this go and tried to decide what to do next. _I should go see the old lady to check how the others are doing__, _Naruto decided and jumped out the window, heading towards the Hokage Tower.

A few minutes later he landed in front of the tower and entered the front doors. A few people gave him the expected dirty looks, but he just brushed it off and headed to see the old lady. After ascending to the level her office was on, he opened the doors to a crying Shikamaru and a few other who were unknown to him and in the same state in front of the Hokage. Deciding against interrupting Naruto turned around and closed the door quietly.

He waited, leaning on the wall for about fifteen minutes until the door opened and the occupants of the room filed out. After they were all gone and Naruto had said hello to Shikamaru, not expecting a response, he entered the office. "Hey, old lady! What happened? I don't think I've ever seen Shikamaru cry before. How are the rest of the team that was sent to get Sasuke?" Naruto asked casually in a mild attempt to lighten the mood that seemed to hang over the room.

Tsunade turned around from looking out the window with a rather blank expression on her face. _I'm so glad at least he is okay. _"Naruto you failed your mission," it was said with very little emotion, "Sasuke has vanished. Kiba has suffered some bad wounds, but is going to live. Shikamaru is in the same boat. Neji is in critical condition, but we have a very good team working on him and at this rate it looks like he will make it." At the thought of the last member she lowered her head before she spoke. "And Chouji has passed away." Tsunade was afraid to look at Naruto.

Naruto was confused. _Screw trying to save that __bastard__. I'm going to kill him myself. We all risked our lives and then he just runs away. I'm going rip his spine out and shove it down his throat__!__ I'm going to rip all his limbs off one at a time__! _Naruto was shocked at his trend of thought and tried to distract himself with conversation. "When is the funeral?" he said in a very uncharactericly bored tone.

"It's in three days. You know where." Tsunade was surprised by Naruto's tone, but just brushed it off as being a state of turmoil.

Naruto began feeling very agitated and just wanted to be alone. "I'll see you later Tsunade," he said as he turned around and left the room, headed for his apartment. _What the hell is wrong with me. _Naruto mentally questioned himself as he left.

_I sure hope he is alright, _Tsunade thought. She felt a little guilty for not expressing her concern for Naruto in the form of a hug or some comforting words.

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"**It's time to set things along,"** The Kyuubi said to himself, alone in it's chamber. The massive beast brought one of his claws to his wrist and slit it, letting the blood spill into the water which was still red from what Naruto had done the day before.

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Naruto had just arrived back at his apartment when he began feeling the same queazy feeling as when he was fighting Sasuke. He took out his keys and unlocked the door to find a relatively trashed apartment. A few rocks had broken the windows where, undoubtedly, the criminals had entered. Spray paint was on the walls, saying hateful words about it being Naruto's fault that Sasuke had left and that he should be banished because he was a 'demon'.

Naruto did not notice most of these things as he keeled over in pain. He managed to close the door behind him. He could barely stand as he tried to get to the washroom. _What the hell is wrong with me__? _He felt like he was burning from the inside out. His clothing was burned up and gently blew off of him, leaving him nude. He made his way into the washroom and attempted to turn on the light to find that all the light bulbs had been smashed. He looked into the mirror to find a pair of bright red eyes with slit pupils looking back at him.

_Kyuubi, _he thought, looking away from the mirror as another wave of the immense pain washed over him. He began to feel like millions of little needles were piercing through his skin all over his body. His head hurt as he clutched it, finding claws digging into his head. He managed to glance at the mirror before he blacked out from the pain. What he saw also added to his lack of consciousness. There was a dark orange-red fur growing all over his body, except for white growing from his chest down to his groin and dark brown-black fur on his forearms. His hair was no longer the bright blonde it once was, but a deep red. That was all he noticed before he fell to the floor unconscious.

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Naruto woke up in front of the cage of his mindset to find the seal completely gone and the bars wide open. Water running red as blood was all around him. "**Stupid****-fox what have you done?" **He was surprised by his tone of voice. It was almost as deep as the demon's usually was. It bounced off the walls much like the Kyuubi's had the last time Naruto had come to this place. He looked around hesitantly as he heard a deep laughing.

"'**Stupid****-fox'**** you say****?**** Well I'm not the only fox here and I'm not the one who couldn't perform a simple bunshin. So I would say You are the ****stupid****-fox."**

A boy, looking to be about sixteen or seventeen years of age, with deep red hair emerged gracefully from the darkness of the open cage. A scent followed the boy's appearance which made Naruto drift into a daze for a moment before he snapped back into focus. What drew most of Naruto's attention was the nine blood-red, white-tipped tails that gently swayed behind the boy. His ears resembled those of a of fox with red fur and black, almost brown, tips. White fur protruded from inside the ears that poked out from the top of his spiky red mane. Less taken in by Naruto were the whisker marks which were the same as the ones he had adorning his face and the red slit eyes Naruto remembered seeing in the mirror. Fangs were hanging over a smirking lip. He had claws where finger and toe nails should have been on both his bare feet and hands. The boy wore a deep red cloak with sleeves. If Naruto had seen the back of said cape, his view would be of a fox head with the kanji for 'Kyuubi' underneath. All black attire was worn under the cloak. All in all, the boy looked beautiful to Naruto, not that he would ever admit it.

"**My Naruto****,**** don't you look dashing****?**** Here****,**** take a look at yourself****,****"** the same deep voice came from the boy.

A mirror appeared next to Naruto out of the blood red water. Naruto was afraid of where this was going. With the knowledge of what he had witnessed before he blacked out and what the Kyuubi was implying, he hesitantly turned to view the mirror. What he saw was exactly what the boy, who he thought was the Kyuubi, looked like. _This is a trick__.__ I look just like him. It must be some sort of genjutsu. I'm not a demon,_ Naruto thought as he looked at the mirror, that was until the other boy walked up beside him and slung an arm over his shoulder casually.

"**No illusion****. N****o trick of the light. We are just two peas in a pod****, or,**** should I say****,**** two souls in a body."**

Naruto's thoughts took a drastic turn and his reflection's ears flattened and tails sagged. _I really am what everyone has been calling me now._

"**Oh come now****. Y****ou should be honored****: n****o longer living a mortal life****, n****o longer being the descendant of some hairy ape. You****,**** my boy****,**** are a ****d****emon ****fox, ****the most brilliant being imaginable****. E****mbrace it and move on****," **the identical boy said, his voice, to Naruto's surprise, was beginning to sound entrancing, "**I will admit ****that**** the bloodlust can get out of control sometimes, but in time you'll overcome it." **The Kyuubi, knowing Naruto's state of mind seeing as they were now one in the same, decided to give him some space if needed. "**I will leave you to brood; ****however, you'll have to come to terms with it sooner or later****. I****t is a fact now boy."**

Naruto glanced at the boy as he faded walking down one of the many corridors of the sewer in a prestigious manner gliding over the ankle deep red water. **_Five_**_**, four, three, two, and**..._Kyuubi's thoughts were cut off.

Naruto's will and tough personality came up all of a sudden. "**Just where do you think your going? I want some answers RIGHT NOW!!" **Naruto demanded. The boy stopped where he was and vanished, only to appear right in front of Naruto with a fanged smirk on his face.

"**Ask away fox-boy****,****" **The Kyuubi said in a tone that stressed the fox part just to piss Naruto off.

"**First off, what the hell have you done to me?" **again, with his demanding voice, Naruto asked. His face was not displaying quite what his voice was portraying. Tears were coming to his eyes he was not happy at what he thought was happening.

In a calming tone, the Kyuubi spoke, "**I have done what was necessary for my survival. Your mortality would have brought me to hell. So I turned you into a ****fox-demon****."**

"**But the seal? How could you have broken it? The ****Fourth**** made it!" **Naruto questioned legging on any excuse he could find to argue that the fact in front of him was fiction. He was crying now, tears gently falling from his eyes.

"**Your father was indeed a brilliant seal-maste****r a****nd great ninja,**** but I am a being of slyness and trickery that is almost ten-thousand years old****. It was not hard to find a way around that," **Kyuubi stated in a calm tone, trying to ease the boy.

"**My…my father? The Yondaime?"** Naruto stammered. His ears perked up and he had a confused and surprised look on his face.

"**The funny part of all of this is that ****you're**** the one that broke the seal, really****,****"** Kyuubi said this just to continue confusing and frustrating the boy. Before Naruto could say anything, the Kyuubi spoke. "**My revenge is what this has given me. Your father wanted you to be viewed as a hero, but instead you were viewed as what you are now****: a**** demon. My ****desire**** for you to have a miserable life was granted, but I did not get any satisfaction out of it so I decided to do something more****,****"** The Kyuubi smirked as he spoke. His aura reeked of power and arrogance."**When you were fighting that pathetic Uchiha****,**** you were deeply confused and a doppelgänger**** of yours appeared here and I kindly asked it to tear the seal in half after making it perform a seal that would mix our blood****,****"** The Kyuubi's grin continued to expand as he spoke, "**I told it only half so as not to give the Uchiha boy a chance to actually kill you. You passed out right now which is what would have happened if you tore the whole seal off."**

"**And how exactly did you get the other half off****?****"** Naruto asked. His mind was used to having to deal with mental abuse constantly, so he had understood what the Kyuubi was talking about. However, he was still upset.

"**With half the seal gone and our blood mixed it was rather easy. Your blood would allow me to touch the seal and my taint wouldn't be ****strong enough for me to be repelled by it. Though,**** if the whole seal was ****still**** there****,**** I would not be able to break it. With only half****,**** I was more than strong enough to break it****,**** so I did." **The Kyuubi took on a nonchalant look. "**My revenge is that you will live to see all your friends die, never get to see your ****father or your mother where they are,**** and you would be what you strived so hard to prove you weren't****: a ****demon. You can't transform**** to change how you look either. It's either ****you're**** a fox, or one of the different types of ****half demon foxes****. Basically****,**** I have ruined your life. Ha Ha,"** a small laugh of spite escaped the perfect lips. The Kyuubi counted down in his mind for what he predicted to happen._** Five, four, three, two and–**_His thoughts proved to be a second off and were cut short when Naruto collapsed to his knees, bringing his clawed hands up to his face. Naruto's tails wrap around himself in a defensive manner and his ears flattened again. "**Funny****,**** you seem so natural with your tails and ears." **Hitting him when he was are down was what Kyuubi was doing. Break the boy's will and he will let go of the ninja filth.

_I want to strangle the blood out of him. I want to rip open his flesh. UGH!! No stop thinking like that__. You're__ thinking no better than him. Control__, __Naruto__,__ control. __But,__ he looks so… so beautiful__.__ I just want to… to... _Naruto's thoughts were stopped when the Kyuubi spoke.

"**There is no point in thinking here boy****. A****ll your thoughts enter my mind. The reason you can't hear mine is because I know how to keep you out of my mind. I have to say****,**** I like your taste in killing though****. It's**** blunt and rash. The control ****you're**** clinging to will eventually come, but, for now, I will have to sate it." **Another grin appeared on the Kyuubi's face. "**You may not have ****noticed, but you can smell me and my smell is encouraging you to do many things. One being**** to ****taste me. Another**** is ****sex, but that will come later."**

Naruto could not handle this anymore. All reasonable thinking was gone, so he leapt at the Kyuubi with his fangs bared. Kyuubi wanted to express what he thought without Naruto knowing it, so he chose the perfect slot of time when Naruto would not really be listening. Kyuubi fell back as Naruto had tackled him and tilted his head to the side displaying his neck to let Naruto sink his fangs in.

"**Drink up so you can calm down****,****" **he calmly said as Naruto sank his teeth in and drank, rational thought slowly coming back.

After, Naruto's thirst was quenched and his mind was in the right order. He quickly jumped back as if the Kyuubi were a vile plague. "**Why did I just do that? The blood****... Ugh. B****lood is supposed to be gross." **The question was from curiosity, but he was not really really desiring any answer.

"**Blood-lust****, m****y fox-boy****, a****nd my blood is the most exotic of them all. Tha****t's**** seven questions that I have answered. The one of your father****, t****he answer would be yes****;**** that courageous, powerful, but foolish man was your father. Now anymore?" **Kyuubi's suaveness about the whole situation was what Naruto would call rude, but he, not having a history of receiving sympathy, was going to cope with it one way or another, so he started blunt as usual.

"**Then what now? Why would you turn me into something that rivals your power?****"** Naruto questioned.

"**Simple. I am fatigued by a world of humans and lesser demon****s and, personally,**** I think things come better in pairs****. D****on't you?" **Kyuubi continued with the casual was still laying on the ground where Naruto had tackled him inspecting one of his claws for any imperfections.

"**What do you mean by ****p****airs? First off****,**** you don't have a body****. A****nd second****,**** I would never join you." **Naruto was confused as to why the Kyuubi was just so calm about everything.

"**Naruto****,****" **his voice made every syllable of the name flow into Naruto's ears like silk, "**Me getting a body is a small task ****when**** using some of the many elements I control to create one. And second****,**** you are now a demon. Nobody, but me is going to accept**** you. And don't worry****,**** I'm not going to destroy Konoha****. I****t was never even my intention to attack." **Continuing to confuse the boy, the Kyuubi stood up, after not finding any imperfections with his claws, and walked over to Naruto.

"**What do you mean ****'****not your intention****'****? You killed hundreds of people and laid waste**** to half the village." **Naruto stepped back from the Kyuubi, holding an arm up infront of him in defence.

The Kyuubi stopped walking. "**A very powerful user of the Sharingan used the ****m****angekyou ****s****haringan to manipulate me under ****an**** extremely powerful illusion. His name was Uchiha Madara. ****He was, y****our little brat of a friend, Sasuke's great, great grandfather. You and I are going to destroy him." **The Kyuubi stared Naruto in the eyes. "**You seem to be ever drifting from that boy as you learn more about him. I think he was right ****on**** one front though, you most likely won't become Hokage. Oh well****, i****t's not as though you will ever be his friend again." **The Kyuubi closed his eyes and tilted his head to side before he opened them again in a manner of putting the past in it's place as he spoke.

_Sasuke. I have to bring him back for Sakura. I promised._

The Kyuubi kept switching the element of which he spoke in regards to Naruto's life: what has been, what is, and what will be in Naruto's life. And for each of these periods of time, he was switching from a fact that does not matter to one that is negative in his speech. He wanted to depress the boy with confusion, so he kept switching the topic and stayed away from anything positive. "**Oh yes, but you made a promise****, a****nd you always keep your promises. It's your 'Nindo, your Ninja way'. Bahhg. You are a demon now, not a ninja. Put the head band away. Thats twelve questions now****. S****till curious?" **_**Alright I have had my fun**__**. L**__**et us end this so he can sleep. Oh**__**! M**__**aybe just one last trick. The moment he looks into a mirror he will realize it wasn't just a dream.**_

"**I…I ugh. Just leave me alone." **Naruto said and turned around to leave. He drifted out of the sewer and into a happy dream. The Kyuubi made it seem as though what just happened to Naruto was just a dream before he took to creating his body.

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In Naruto's apartment the body of an unconscious, half demon, fox, covered in red fur, lay on the floor. It's tails, wrapped around it for warmth and protection, began to glow an eerie red. The red glow left the body and elements of the air around began to form a very similar body to the one on the floor. The glow faded as the body was complete. The half demon fox stretched it's newly formed limbs and muscles before speaking.

"**One last joke before the boy can receive my quarter****,****" **the Kyuubi said to the moonlit room.


	2. A Village’s Cruel Blood Liqueur

If anyone is curious as to what 'Quarter' meant in the last chapter it represented the Kyuubi's mercy towards Naruto. Seeing as Naruto did not receive any there was No Quarter. Led Zeppelin is one of my favorite bands of all time. I have over 5,000 plays of their foundation rocking melodies on my iTunes. Just a little of what I am into on with the story. This chapter will be a little more into what I rated the story to be, meaning some violence and such. Kyuubi will seem like a rather confusing person with contradicting opinions in this chapter, but I am purposely making him confusing. He has this whole thing planned out so he will slip in a comment here or there that won't make sense. You won't get the whole story about his opinion for another chapter or two so just be patient. I don't own Naruto a Japanese genius does. Thank you to Acaykath for Beta reading my story.

Chapter Two: A Village's Cruel Blood Liqueur

_Our older brother bit by a Vampire!  
For a year we caught his tears in a cup.  
And now we're gonna make him drink it.  
Come on Alex don't die or dry up!  
Our mother shoulda just named you Laika!  
It's for your own good,  
it's for the neighborhood!_

_Neightborhood #2 (Laika), The Arcade Fire, Funeral._

Eyes slowly crept open on the head of the human like fox who was very ignorant of it's personal surroundings. _Oh thank __god__. _The creature breathed a sigh of relief. _It was all just a bad dream. Though__,__ I liked the last part __about __being the Hokage and kicking Sasuke's ass._

Naruto got up from his bed and looked around at his apartment. The different location he had woken up in further relieved him. _I guess I forgot I fell asleep on my bed__,_ he thought, then breathed a sigh of frustration at the sight before him. _Again? Wonder how much this one is going to cost. _He took note of the shattered windows and the time of day. It was late out and the sun was setting. _What the hell happened? A whole night and day. I guess that fight with Sasuke took a lot out of me. _He continued to look around his apartment, surprised to find that the the floor was rather soft. He was also very warm considering the shattered windows and colder weather for such a time of year.

He looked at the graffiti on the walls: '_Its all your fault Sasuke left', 'You should just die', 'Demon filth', '__You're__ worthless', 'We should have finished what the Fourth started', 'You disgrace the Yondaime's image'. _The last two he read struck a chord in him .**"****He is the one who cursed me. I should rip their heads off,"** he said as he punched the wall. He noticed three shocking things once he did this: his tone of voice was similar to what it had been in the dream; the wall gave way leaving a gaping whole into his bathroom; and the fist he used to punch the wall was actually a black, human-like paw with white claws. **"****I thought it was a dream," **he said to no one, examining his paw. It had the dexterity and fingers of a human hand, but calloused pads, black/brown fur and very sharp claws.

His line of sight led him to inspect the rest of himself. He looked up on the arm he had extended in front of him. The black/brown fur changed to a red fur just before his elbow. He lifted his paws to his head and felt his ears twitch at sounds around the room and noticed how clear everything sounded; he could hear insects scurrying under the base boards. He lowered his hands and brought them to his lower back. He closed his eyes when he felt them. The nine, bushy, red, white-tipped tails flowing calmly behind him. He dropped to his furred knees. A piece of his now shattered mirror on the floor projecting his image back to him. The clarity of the image in the dark frightened him as the red, slit eyes stared back at him over his short muzzle. He opened his mouth to scream noticing his four two-inch long canines. His scream was more of a roaring howl than an actual scream. Then a voice cut off his plea to god.

"**I would refrain from doing that. You could attract unwanted attention and draw dozens of foxes to your apartment."**

Naruto glanced over to see a boy who was practically a clone of himself before he leapt at him. His claws grabbed the half demon by the shoulders, digging into the fox's flesh. The smell of its blood reminded Naruto of his dream with the Kyuubi. He was overcome with urges to do things he couldn't even imagine.

**"****You should have seen the look on your face****,****"** the Kyuubi interrupted Naruto's rampage, smirking, **"****Did you enjoy your dream. I made it nice and happy****, s****eamless from your traumatizing event with me back where my cage was. ****'****One last joke****'**** I said to myself before we leave."**

"**You're**** a heartless bastard****,**** and what do you mean 'WE'****?**** I'm not going ANYwhere with you****!****" **Naruto said angrily. **"****And if that wasn't a dream then I'm just a powerful as you now. I'm gonna kill you." **Naruto's fur bristled in a carnivorous manner, But to Naruto's anger and fury the Kyuubi just laughed.

"**Boy****, ****you're**** new to your power****. Y****ou have no idea how to use it. I have nearly ten thousand years of experience with mine. You would have to be extremely dense to think you could outclass me." **The Kyuubi tried to pull Naruto's claws out of his shoulders. They wouldn't budge so he left them alone. "**And****,**** I would suggest you do come with me. You will end up killing all the people around yo****u ****w****ithout me around to sate your bloodlust****. And****,**** I am not staying here."**

"**I'm not some mindless demon that craves blood. I can deal with it just piss off****!****"** Naruto seethed back angrily .

"**Oh, but you are. One sniff of blood with your ultra****-****sensitive nose and ****you're**** a mindless killing machine. Right now****,****you're**** not because you have a goal****:**** 'Kill Kyuubi'."** Kyuubi made a slightly dramatic pose with his luring eyes when stating the last part. "**But****,**** whatever****,**** I'll ****follow**** you around for one day. We'll see how long you last before you do something to someone."** Kyuubi smirked again, a common expression Naruto was finding on the fox's face. "**And****,**** when you do****,****I'm not going to stop you. I'll let you feel the guilt. Let you taste the blood****. Then****,**** when you come down from your high****,**** you'll see first hand just what you have become."**

Naruto slammed the Kyuubi into the wall behind him and ripped his claws out of the demon's shoulders. The wounds steamed closed and Kyuubi got up from the rubble, brushing his shoulders off casually. Naruto couldn't help but lick the blood off his claws.

"**See what I mean****? Y****ou couldn't help, but to do that****,****" **Kyuubi said, gesturing to Naruto current action.

Naruto calmed down after Kyuubi said this. _This is so messed up. I need to get out of here._

Kyuubi then took on the casual look again after hearing what Naruto thought and stated, "**Seeing as you want to go for a walk to try and clear your head I will give you a small gift before you plan on going anywhere." **Kyuubi closed his eyes and changed into the boy Naruto had seenin his dream. He opened his eyes again and stretched out his tails. "You just have to close your eyes and imagine yourself as a human. That damned sewer made even the softest of my voices earth shaking."

Naruto was staring at him with a mixed expression. His killer intent was very potent, Kyuubi noticed, but, along with that, he could feel the boys anguish in the air. "**I don't need your help so just shut up and piss off."**

"I already said I was going to follow you for one day, so I am not going anywhere." Kyuubi stated calmly.

Naruto just huffed and closed his eyes, thinking of how he looked. _I want to look just like I did._

A voice entered his head, breaking his focus. _**That won't work**__**.**__** Remember what I told you. It's either fox or one of the different types of half demons. You'd be lucky if you had **__**blond**__** tips.**_

Naruto opened his eyes. He gave Kyuubi a dirty look, but Kyuubi's mouth was not moving. _Oh yeah, the mind thing. Can you NOT distract while I'm tying to focus__? _It was thought with a harsh tone and visually expressed with his glare.

_**Sure**__**,**__** sure**__**, **___Kyuubi rumbled in his mind.

Naruto closed his eyes again and thought about his appearance. His fur receded and the rough pads on his feet and hands softened. The tails, ears, fangs, and claws remained. He found that with his lack of fur, the room was quite chilly and, looking down, he noticed that he was nude. He curled a few of his tails in front of himself for some modesty, blushing slightly.

"Why can't I look anymore human?" Naruto demanded.

"Because, we are to be proud of what we are and not hide it." Kyuubi partially lied. _**Only when he learns he can't stay here will he receive his scarf.**_

"Well then, how the god damn hell am I supposed to go out in public?" Naruto continued with his demanding tone, ears perking up and stepping forward in an aggressive fashion.

Kyuubi's reply was simple, "Wear a hooded cloak. I'll be a little fox following you around and, don't worry, I'll hide eight of my tails."

"And how is that... supposed... to hide... my FUCKING CLAWS!? IS THIS ALL SOME KIND OF FUCKING JOKE TO YOU?! WHATS THE BIG FUCKING IDEA!? I AM NOT GONNA FOLLOW YOU! YOU'VE RUINED MY LIFE! ISN'T THAT ENOUGH!? SO NOW YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW ME AROUND AND RUB IT IN!?" Naruto screamed, grabbing hold of Kyuubi again after crossing the small distance between them, tears pouring out of his eyes.

_**So**__**,**__** he finally completely cracked. Time to start mending the shards. Here is part of my quarter.**_ Kyuubi took on a serious look, a look Naruto had yet to see on the demon's face. "Naruto, out of all the people in this village that were affected by what happened twelve years ago, you were hurt a great extent more. You deserve revenge on that lowly Uchiha Madara more than anyone. He is the reason this village hates you. He is the reason you're never going to be Hokage. He is the reason you don't have any parents or family. He is the reason you grew up in a world that rejected your very existence.

"You irritated me for 12 years. You confined me and occasionally insulted me. This is my revenge: Giving you an endless life and giving you the power to kill the man that, before you were even born, ruined your life. It may not seem like it, Naruto, but I feel sympathy for you because of what you have had to go through. I am willing to be the first being to ever truly accept you even now that you ARE a demon.

"You can't stay here Naruto. Not until you learn to control yourself. My cruelty will end soon I promise." Kyuubi finished looking Naruto in the eyes.

The apartment fell under a emotional silence. Naruto slowly let go of Kyuubi before he turned and went to his closet, avoiding shards of glass on the floor. Then he gathered some clothing. He heard thunder in the distance, but knew it would be a while before the storm it formed from would bless Konoha with it's downpour. He did not even look in Kyuubi's direction as he dressed.

He wore a large, black cloak with a hood and sleeves over some black shinobi pants and a black sweater. To hide his clawed feet, he put on combat boots that he had received for his last birthday from the Third Hokage. It was one of the two presents he received for his most recent birthday. He slid on gloves in an attempt to hide his claws, but they poked out of the ends a little. He settled for putting his hands in his cloak's pockets.

Kyuubi just stood where he was, looking at Naruto. He could hear Naruto's thoughts and knew the boy was utterly depressed. _**It is always darkest before the dawn.**_ Kyuubi thought, keeping it from reaching Naruto's mind.

Naruto headed for the door and, before he stepped out, he said, "I would tell you to fuck off, but your not going to listen."

Kyuubi closed his eyes and turned into a fox. He was larger than the average fox, but believable. The nine tails that swayed behind him swished into one. It was a little fluffier than a usual fox tail, but again, it was believable. He took off after Naruto and was out the door, behind said boy, before it closed.

Naruto could hear his neighbor's child talking to some of his friends. Naruto knew the boy was an orphan of the Kyuubi attack just like him and that he was the boy's vent for revenge. The boy was a little older than himself. He knew this because the boy was in his academy class, but dropped out when he was eight. How the boy tied Naruto to the demon confused Naruto, but he assumed that the foster boy's parents had told him the story in pieces, so as not to break the law. He had never managed to catch the boys name though.

The words the boy spoke were about Naruto and were very impertinent. Little did the boy know that Naruto could here every word that escaped the boy's lips due to his enhanced hearing.

"See, there he is. I told you the demon freak lived there. See, he even has a fox with him," the boy said almost proudly, "I was one of the people who broke into his house while he was in the hospital. I wrote 'demon filth' in spray paint on his wall." The other kids wowed at his foolish bravery.

Naruto went ridged out of anger for a second, then just kept walking down the stairs. He wanted to go on this walk to clear his head. It was proving to do the exact opposite though. He heard the boys talk about following him.

_**Foolish brats. Unfortunately for everyone**__** except for me**__**,**__** in this situation**__**,**__** Naruto is going to claim his first victim**__**,**_ Kyuubi again thought away from Naruto's mind, _**This has to be done**__**, t**__**hen everything will slowly get better.**_

Naruto was heading to a less populated area of the city. Normally, during the day, said place would be bustling with people, but, do to nightfall cascading over a vast majority of the sky, all the attractions for people to come to were closed. Most of the shops and restaurants lining street were dark from inactivity and few people walked along the sidewalks.

Naruto just walked with his head down, fox in tow and ears making his hood look similar to Kankuro's. His tails were making the lower back of his cloak sway as if it was in a rather strong breeze. Most people didn't recognize him, and the dirty looks he received were mainly for the fox that walked silently by his side.

The group of three kids followed Naruto and avoided conversation so as not to be noticed by him. Naruto could smell them though, and was really eager to just beat the shit out of them to make them go away. He leashed himself well though, just blaming the over aggressiveness on his state of mind and not what Kyuubi had done.

The road Naruto was on wound to the right, up a hill, and around a forest. This allowed any travelers to have a nice view of a park that lay in the forest and the shops lining the other side of the street. There were benches that lined the sidewalk, facing the forest to allow people a view while they relaxed. The air was calm and still. The night seemed quiet and peaceful. Kyuubi thought otherwise as he knew what was going to eventually happen.

Naruto sat down on one of the many benches; Kyuubi sat beside him. He brought his gloved hands up to his face which was hidden in his cloak and began to cry. He quietly sobbed as the kids snuck ever closer to him, using bushes that hid them but allowed them to see Naruto. He could care less if anyone saw him doing this. He was completely and utterly emotionally exhausted. He just wanted to let his problems come pouring out through his emotions.

Night was drawing closer. One of the two kids said that he had to go home or his father would use him as a practice dummy for kunai and shuriken. So, the child left and the other two just sat and waited for Naruto to do something.

"He is such a wimp; look at him cry. Like that foul thing even deserves to cry," the boy sneered about Naruto in the bushes thinking his conversation was between two and not four. A bad idea came across the boy's mind.

With his youth and inexperienced judgement, the boy thought the idea was brilliant and planned to follow it through. "Let's throw some rocks at him, Hikaru," he said, picking up a rock the size of a plum from the ones(One rock cannot be scattered...) that lay scattered under the bushes, covered in dry, light brown dirt. Hikaru was a little hesitant about what his friend was planning to do. It was night now and the boy who had come up with the idea thought that they wouldn't be seen.

_**Here we go**__**, **___Kyuubi mused.

The rock was hurled at Naruto. In his state of depression, he didn't notice the rock or most of what the kids had spoken about. The rock hit him in on his left cheek bone. The skin was split and allowed a drip of blood out before it steamed closed. His pupils dilated. The next rock headed for his right shoulder was stopped by one of his tails. He heard the two kids gasp as anger and bloodlust flooded his mind. His eyes were glowing an ominous red in the night. The street lights only lit up the other side of the street, leaving his ghostly figure with red eyes in the shadow to the boys.

Naruto could smell the kids. His anger was fueled by his bloodlust as he dashed towards them. He lunged over the bushes and grabbed the one he knew as his neighbor by the neck, holding him up in the air. He wrapped one of his tails around the boy he knew to be Hikaru so he couldn't escape. His hood fell, revealing more of his attributes. The kids were overcome by fear.

"You think you have any god damn reason to hate the demon as much as me? You think you lost as much as I did cause of that fox? My parents are dead, I have no family, not even step parents. I have been alone since I was four. Even before that I was not wanted where I was. I have been hated for something I had no control over. The murderer of my parent's was sealed in me and I didn't even know until a few months ago. And now, I am the damned thing. It's You that does not deserve to cry. You don't know a god damned thing!"

The boy's eyes widened as Naruto's claws dug into his neck. Red chakra seeped off of him, burning the boy. The boy went to scream, but Naruto's fangs closed around his throat, puncturing his airways. He could feel the boy's breath run against his fangs. He sucked the blood out of the boys neck, drinking it in like an alcoholic would their favorite beverage. His hand was gripping so tightly around the boy's neck that the neck snapped. The boy's eyes took on a soulless looked as he passed away. Naruto jerked his head back as he pushed his hand forward, ripping the boy's throat out from his neck.

He tossed the throat away and continued to drink the blood flowing from the wound. Arteries bled, coating muscles and tendons that were torn out of the boys throat as Naruto fed. Hikaru, still behind him and wrapped in his tail, was shocked into stillness, paralyzed by fear. Naruto finished with the corpse after swallowing some of the bloodied muscles and tendons that held up the boy's head. He threw the body away after tearing out one last muscle.

Naruto's anger took on the lust side of things, having had his blood craving sated. A certain tension needed to be released and Naruto was relying purely on instinct for that. He turned around until he was facing Hikaru and grabbed him, releasing his tail's hold. He threw the boy to the ground, getting on all fours over him. He ripped off the boy's pants, following what his body seemed to know.

Naruto opened his cloak and tossed it to the side. He pulled down his pants, revealing his painfully erect cock. He kneeled down, spread Hikaru's legs, and spat on his hole. He positioned himself at the boy's entrance and rammed himself in. Hikaru tried to scream, but a tail muffled his pleas. Naruto thrust in and out of the boy violently. Blood leaked from the stretched hole and coated Naruto, allowing him to slide in and out more easily.

Despite Hikaru's pain, the unique friction to his young, ignorant prostate caused him to become erect against his will. Naruto noticed this and just slashed at the boy's cock with his claws. The cuts bled immensely. Seeing as the boy's body required blood to fill the desire, Hikaru began to turn white from the blood loss.

After a few minutes, Naruto came to a climax and came inside Hikaru with three hard thrusts. The boy's eye closed as he fainted from blood loss and Naruto's eyes narrowed back to normal. The whole event had taken place with minimal noise.

Naruto took one look at the boy he was hovering over and immediately backed away. Noticing where his manhood was, he panicked with the conclusion that he came to.

"No!" Naruto gasped out, "No. What have I done?" He whispered to himself. He just stared at the boy, frightened and confused. Noticing he didn't have his cloak on, he again panicked and got up to find it, wanting to hide how he looked.

Standing in the small clearing, he looked around for his cloak. He found it, but, after pulling it up, he saw the other boy's body and fell to his knees vomiting. What came out of his stomach frightened him even more. His vomit, from what minor light the distant street lights told, was red, full of stringy pink meats. He took one more look at the corpse, noticing the bite marks; he found what he had just vomited up to be what was once the boy's neck. He backed up, leaning against a tree. He began to cry again, bringing his knees to his chest, flattening his ears, and curling his tails around him for warmth.

It began to rain when Kyuubi walked calmly into the small clearing not half a minute later. He took one sniff of the scene. _**He even **__**raped**__** one of them. **_Noticing where Naruto was and his state, he changed into his human form. He walked over to the boy after grabbing the forgotten cloak. He knelt down in-front of the boy, noticing that he was covered in blood, and pulled him into an embrace after placing the cloak back over his shoulders.

"My cruelty has ended. This is why you can't stay here. I will help you learn to control yourself, then, and only then, can you return," Kyuubi whispered soothingly into Naruto's ear as he placed the boy's head against his chest. He stood up, holding Naruto bridal style with the boy's head against his chest, and summoned a red cloak similar to that of Naruto's to hide his features as he headed back to the boy's apartment. He pulled the cloak's hood over his head and began walking as Naruto clung to his chest.

The rain washed away the blood that covered Naruto as he cried into Kyuubi's chest. He could taste the blood on his teeth. It was like some drug that he was immediately addicted to.

The walk wasn't relatively long, but the ever increasing rain did not make it any easier. Kyuubi noticed Naruto had fallen asleep when they came upon Naruto's complex. When they arrived on his floor, Kyuubi noticed someone standing in-front of Naruto's door.

Skikamaru Nara was waiting out front of Naruto's apartment when a figure in red cloak appeared out of the rain, holding another figure in a black cloak. Shikamaru ignored the pair until they stopped in-front of Naruto's door.

The figure in the red cloak had his hood up, hiding most of his face. The small light over Naruto's door lit up his mouth and chin, revealing his fangs, but that was all Shikamaru saw of the beings face. He noticed that the figure had bare feet with claws for toe nails. The hands that held the figure in the black also had claws. What he could see of the black cloaked figure was just a clawed hand that clutched the red cloak.

"I need you to move, human," Kyuubi said, trying to be polite as he went to enter Naruto's apartment.

"Where is Naruto?" Shikamaru was confused about the human comment. It was too troublesome to deal with now, so he focused on the reason he was there.

"Who is it that demands Naruto's whereabouts? If you knew him, you would know that he can't just trust anyone that knows his name," Kyuubi spoke in a calm tone, his tone gave Shikamaru reason to believe that he would not get an answer unless he answered first.

"My name is Shikamaru Nara, of the Nara clan. I am one of the rookie nine that Naruto is a part of. He has been a friend of mine since our days in the academy. And yes, I am aware that Naruto should not trust just anyone," Shikamaru stated.

"Well then, Naruto is in my arms. He is unable to speak right now though so I will be his interpreter," Kyuubi answered. Before Shikamaru could ask why, Kyuubi spoke, "But, before you ask any questions, I think it would be best if we entered his apartment."

"Very well," Shikamrau agreed as he stepped aside after opening the already unlocked door.

Kyuubi took Naruto inside and went over to his bed. Kyuubi placed the boy down on the bed to find that Naruto would not let go of his cloak. _**This boy seems to have a good grip with everything**__**, **_he thought, remembering when Naruto first grabbed him after waking up. So, he lifted the boy back up, turned around, and sat down on the bed with Naruto still clutching him.

"Is this good?" Shikamaru asked. With a simple nod from Kyuubi, Shikamaru began with his list of questions. "Why is Naruto unable to speak? And, why should I trust you? Who are you. You don't have a Konoha forehead protector, or any for that matter, so your not a ninja. You have claws and fangs though, so your either from some sort of clan, like the Inuzuka Clan, or you're not human. You don't seem to be worried about me, which either speaks of foolishness or power." Shikamaru used all that he had seen and heard in the formation of his questions.

"My, my. Quite the curious and attentive lad are we?" Kyuubi smirked, "Well first, Naruto is unable to speak because he is sleeping. And, before you ask, he was not knocked out. He is emotionally exhausted and needs rest. He has undergone a serious trauma and needs to accept it. Second, you have no reason to trust me and I am not going to manipulate you to, but know this I am only here because of Naruto and I care for him deeply. Third, who I am is of no importance right now, seeing as you would not understand it even if I told you. Fourth, no, I am not a ninja, and I am not from a clan, and I am not a human. And Fifth, I am not worried about you because I am powerful," Kyuubi said, answering Shikamaru's questions, not following the manipulative way he asked them to reveal anything else.

Kyuubi then asked a question of his own, "I have answered your questions, now for my own. What is it that you came to see Naruto for?"

_He seems to be telling the truth and he is not going to budge if I ask him anything remotely personal. So__,__ he wants his privacy and to protect Naruto from what I may think. I guess I can trust him if he is not going to reveal himself to protect Naruto._ "Well yesterday I was given news about a very close friend of mine and of Naruto's passing away. Naruto was there when I was told and he said hello to me. In my state at the time, I ignored his greeting. I have come to apologize and to see how he is feeling, seeing as he has no parents to comfort him with the passing of our friend," Shikamaru said, speaking the truth.

_**No hesitation, no stammering, no increase in heartbeat. He is showing genuine concern for Naruto**__**.**__** I can trust him. He is perfect for the message. **_"Well Naruto, in all honesty, has not had your friend's passing weighing down his mind to much; however something else has. If you swear to tell only the your Hokage of this and nobody else, then I will tell you the answer to whom I am. In no form may this knowledge escape your mind, except to the Hokage herself who already knows the ramifications of improper actions and to listen before taking any form of action. This change of heart is because I trust you. Do you agree to my terms?" Kyuubi looked incredulously at Shikamaru.

After a moments thought, Shikamaru answered, "Yes."

"Well then. What has Naruto in a state of depression, and influenced by countless other emotions, is the gift I have given to him. He would call this gift a curse right now, but in time he will come to see it in a proper light. Twelve years ago the nine-tailed, when the Kyuubi attacked, he was sealed inside of Naruto. I am that fox," Kyuubi said as his lifted a hand to remove the hood of his cloak. His ears flopped up and the dim light hit his face. Shikamaru went rigged from the sight. "Listen before you do something irrational. I have escaped the seal by mixing mine and Naruto's blood. This process has turned Naruto into a fox demon as well." Kyuubi removed Naruto's hood to reveal that he looked exactly like the boy holding him. Shikamaru noticed how much the boy resembled Naruto's former appearence.

Kyuubi continued, "This was done for a good reason. Twelve years ago, when I attacked, I was being manipulated by a very powerful ninja by the name of Uchiha Madara. I never meant to attack this village, in fact, I am the protector of the land of fire and am pleased by what this village has done for my land. I want to give Naruto the life he deserved and help him to avenge his parents' death. The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was his father and a less famous ANBU captain, under the alias of Fish, named Kushina Uzumaki was his mother. I want to avenge his father and mother's death because his father was a great and noble man and his mother was a kind spirit who gave her life to protect Naruto."

Kyuubi stopped because Naruto was clutching a little to hard, tearing his flesh through the cloak. He checked to see how Naruto was to find that he was still asleep. _**Must be having a nightmare. His dreams I can only create, but never enter.**_

The clutching stopped. "However with the power I have given Naruto. There are certain instincts that take over someone who is not used to them. For example, Naruto killed two boys around your age about half an hour ago after a whiff of blood and a rock being thrown at him. His anger and bloodlust caused him to do this. Do not worry; his lust has been sated," Kyuubi said, raising a hand to calm Shikamaru down after hearing the boy's heart rate increase.

"This had to be done for him to realize he cannot stay here until he can control himself. I think to people dead is better than an entire village. I do not have the power to make him to do something against his will, so I had to let him see what needs to be done. Naruto if provoked enough in this village, which is bound to happen if he stays here, will destroy it."

"Where do you plan on taking him?" Shikamaru asked before Kyuubi could continue.

"You are not allowed to know because I do not want his past to come flooding up on him. But know this, this village has held great hostility to Naruto. Now Naruto has the ability to give back that hostility ten fold, whether he wants to or not. When that happens, it will be then end of this village. The vandalism in this room is proof of said hostility, and this has happened more than once. I want to remove that threat from the village and to give Naruto a happy life." Kyuubi looked down at Naruto with concern in his eyes as Naruto clutched him again.

"Naruto is going to wake up soon. He will say his goodbyes, and then we are leaving. Do not tell the Hokage anything until tomorrow morning. I do not want any of your ANBU coming after us out of a hesitant attempt to retrieve Naruto. Let her know that Naruto is safe when you tell her," Kyuubi finished.

"How long will you be gone?" Shikamaru asked trying to urge on the conversation. Silence and tailed beasts did not seem to mingle well together in his mind.

"We may never return. It is all up to him. Where we are going, he will be accepted instead of rejected like he is here. He may not want to return because of how he is treated there. I am not sure of his desires in the future, but one thing is for sure: You will be hearing about us. You may not know it though."

Naruto stirred and opened his eyes to see Kyuubi looking at him with concern. He whispered,"I…I killed them…with my own hands. I really am a demon now aren't I?" The questions was rhetorical. Naruto lowered his gaze from Kyuubi.

Kyuubi went to change the subject. "I have a friend of yours here so you can say goodbye before we leave," Kyuubi said, gesturing to Shikamaru,"Don't worry. He knows everything and is not going to do anything rash." Kyuubi used his thoughts to inform Naruto of what he essentially said to Shikamaru while he was unconscious.

"I…I need a moment," Shikamaru said. His mind was used to dealing with many things at once, but this was just not believable. The Lord of Demons just sat down and had a conversation with him. The being that killed almost half of the most powerful ninja village in the world twelve years ago was talking to him, claiming things that he did not think were possible. His mind indeed needed a moment to get itself together.

Naruto lifted his head to look over at Shikamaru. He was terrified of what Shikamaru would think. "I…I don't know what to say. I failed the mission and Chouji is dead and Sasuke got away and people say it's all my fault and now I'm this and those…those kids…I…I raped one," Naruto said, finishing with a whisper, lowering his gaze again, not wanting to admit that what he had done was fact.

Shikamaru took notice of his mood and, thinking it uncommon for Naruto, he tried to urge him back to the person he knew Naruto to be. "Naruto I will always be your friend, no matter what you are. It is who you are that matters and I think your a good person. What happened with Sasuke and Chouji and everyone else was not your fault, so don't blame yourself. And, I agree with Kyuubi. You should go and learn to control your… ah… instincts. Those kids– What you did was terrible, but I know you will do everything in your power to not let it ever happen again. I believe in you Naruto," Shikamaru finished

"Thanks Shikamaru." A little determination came back to him. "I'm gonna avenge my parent's death and Chouji's and bring that bastard back here. And I am gonna be the grea…test umm?" He stopped with the realization that what he had been working towards all his life was never going to be.

To try and prevent further depression Shikamaru cut in,"Naruto, I am sure you will do great things with your life and I hope you do return to this village. I have to go now, or my mother will be to troublesome to deal with. And, I need some time to comprehend what I have just learnt." Shikamaru crossed the room and stood in-front of Naruto, raising his hand in the form to shake. Naruto took his hand and shook it. "Remember, I will always be your friend, and I believe you will avenge your parent's death as well as Chouji's. Goodbye Naruto. Have a good life." With that, and one last shake of his hand, Shikamaru left the vandalized apartment.

Naruto's expression went right back to what it was when he first woke up.

Kyuubi took the moment to try and put Naruto's mind back on track. "Naruto, you now understand that we have to leave. Gather what you would like to take from here so we can leave while this storm still gives us cover."

Naruto got up, letting go of Kyuubi, and walked over to his closet. He grabbed some clothing and a few pictures of him with the Third Hokage, the Fifth Hokage and Jiraiya, team seven, and the rookie nine. He grabbed some of his instant ramen and put it all in a bag.

"I would suggest you don't bring that Ramen; you won't like it anymore." Kyuubi said, pointing at the Ramen.

Naruto's mood just sagged more. Kyuubi went over to him and took the bag after Naruto took the Ramen out. He held it up and it disappeared in red fire. Naruto looked at him angrily. Kyuubi opened his mind to Naruto, sending him the knowledge that it was just sealed away.

Kyuubi took to cutting the silence. "I have a gift for you because you have realized you cannot stay here. It is called a fox blood scarf. It will allow you to appear more human. And, before you ask why I did not give it to you before, I already stated my reason. Use your new intellect to piece it together," Kyuubi said as he scratched Naruto's arm, drawing a little blood.

Naruto gasped and lifted his hand to cover his nose to stop the scent from overtaking him again. Kyuubi wiped the blood away with his finger before the wound steamed shut and smeared it on Naruto's neck. Naruto, with a muffled voice, said, "Don't do that. That stuff makes me do horrible things. Don't let me smell it."

"Don't worry. Your bloodlust won't come back until you're hungry again, and we will be gone before then," Kyuubi spoke, lowering Naruto's arm from covering his face.

As they spoke, the blood soaked into Naruto's skin and a blood red scarf appeared around Naruto's neck. Immediately, his ears and tails vanished. His hair went blonde with red tips. He still had his claws, fangs and slit pupils, but his eyes were a deep blue again. His ears were tapered, but could easily be hidden by his hair. He looked like he could now pass for human.

"Here. Look at yourself." Kyuubi couldn't help but feel a hint of déjà vu as he said this. He lifted a piece of Naruto's shattered mirror off the ground and held it in front of Naruto's face.

"The only draw back to the fox blood scarf is the pain that comes from wearing it to long: a very bad headache; sore muscles; and, if worn to long, it will vanish until you can maintain it again. It will last about an hour or so before it starts to hurt, and at most two hours before it vanishes. Again, just think and it will be done," Kyuubi said as a scarf appeared around his neck. The only difference between him and Naruto now was that his hair was red with blonde tips. He had the same deep blue eyes with the slit pupils as Naruto.

Naruto asked a question next. "Why can't I wear it for longer?"

"Again, we are not meant to hide what we are. The scarf was made for protection against ignorant people who think we are damned and would try to destroy us. We are beings of slyness and trickery, so we try to not flaunt our power. The scarf is not a luxury; it's an illusion," Kyuubi answered,"That is enough questions. We have to leave."

Kyuubi walked towards the door.

Naruto took one last look around his apartment. _I guess I'm not gonna keep my promise of being the greatest Hokage ever. Sorry Fourth. Sorry…father._

With that, Naruto turned around and put his cloak's hood back up. They exited the apartment and headed down the stairs. _**The best way to leave unnoticed would be as foxes. **__**We will shift above the hill with all the faces in it**__**.**__** And**__**,**__** only speak with your thoughts, we want to be as quiet as we can be.**_

_Sure. And the hill your talking about is the Hokage monument. My father's face is up there._

The rest of the trip to the monument was in silence as Naruto led through the most discreet way. The trip up the mountain was tricky from all the rain that flowed down it. Grip was scarce and they did not want to use chakra to stick so as not to draw any attention with the powerful energy that would easily be recognized. It was with some ninja wire, use of trees, and well placed jumps that they finished the journey to the top.

They stood on top of the monument for a moment, embracing the view. Naruto stared out at the soaked city; lights pierced the darkness from the more residential areas and the rain made everything seem unfocused. It was as if it was all just some dark blurry dream.

Naruto cut through the silence. "Why are you being nice to me all of a sudden? I don't understand you," Naruto asked quietly beside Kyuubi. They did not sense anyone within hearing distance, so they weren't overly concerned with noise.

"I have told you already. You don't deserve anymore disrespect. It may seem bipolar of me, but, just getting out of the cage, I needed to vent a bit. Unfortunately, you were again someone's vent for anger. I am truly sorry for that," Kyuubi replied.

Naruto just sighed.

"You will have a good life; just be patient."

Kyuubi turned, leaving. Naruto took one last look at the village before he turned as well. Kyuubi opened his mind to let Naruto know how to take care of his clothing when changing into their fox form. His clothing disappeared much like his bag did, in a burst of flames as he fell to all fours. His tails lashed out in a slightly violent manner and his ears twitched at the rain as they formed back on his body. His legs changed and he grew a snout. Kyuubi said a series of barks and yips that Naruto managed to understand as, 'follow me'. Everything seemed so natural to him as they began to run.

Kyuubi closed his mind to Naruto. _**You will never have to drink this village's cruel blood liqueur again Naruto. I promise,**_ And, off into the moist darkness they fled.


	3. Embraces and Memories

Sorry this chapter took so long. With the beginning of school I have been hard pressed with time.

If you go to youtube and watch the video for the song Neighborhood #2 (Laika) you'll understand how it applies to Naruto. I thought it was a good fit because of the cruelty I have made Naruto endure in the past two chapters; as well as, the cruelty he has faced in his life. The Arcade Fire is a Canadian band from Montreal, Quebec. They are one of my favorite bands as well. Their music is very unique and inspired by their passions. I have yet to find another band that sounds even similar to them. Another bit about my obsession with music on with the story. This chapter will deal with Naruto trying to cope with kept memories. Where Kyuubi is taking him is a while away and while they are on there way there they come across a few elements that throw Naruto into greater depression. Who will save Naruto from his misery? I don't own Naruto a Japanese genius does. Thank you to Acaykath for Beta reading my story.

Chapter Three: Embraces and Memories

_When the time is right and the night is bright  
We will see the things we've come to find  
I've been searching for just a little more  
But the days girl just slip away  
And the red sunset that we just met  
I can see forever_

_Come and see the mind's eye  
We can find it if we try  
Come and see the mind's eye  
Transfixed upon the why  
Come and see the mind's eye  
We can find it if we try_

_Mind's Eye, Wolfmother, Wolfmother._

It was wet, uncomfortable, and muggy as Naruto woke from his sleep. It was fairly dark out, mostly due to the rain clouds and it being dusk again.

Yesterday's events came rushing back to him as he looked around. It would be a terrible understatement to say Naruto was in a bad mood. Kyuubi said they were nocturnal and would only sleep, if ever, during the day. Naruto was upset and had no ambition to go any further when the sun rose. So there they were, in a very large tree, soaking wet in the rain, at the brink of nightfall.

He noticed he was still in fox form and stretched out his legs and tails. Yawning as he did such, the weak light glittered off his fangs. Looking around, he couldn't find his unwanted companion.

_Where are you?_Naruto thought, knowing that Kyuubi would hear him. When he took a breath of frustration from the lack of answer, a scent invaded his nose.

_**You need to learn how to use your senses better. See if you can sniff out where I am,**___Kyuubi's voiced hummed into his mind as he took to the instructions said fox told him.

The scent lead him to look down to see nothing, but forest floor. He jumped off the branch heading for the ground to follow the scent. Landing gracefully, he noticed that the scent simply stopped if he moved any further than a foot from where he stood. It felt like there was a small pulse in the air around him, but he just ignored it.

Being in a relatively bad mood and having no desire to do anything, Naruto just gave up. Releasing a set of barks and yips he was surprised he knew, Naruto said, "I give up. I don't know where you are. Can we just go? I'm sick of waiting here all wet."

_**Your nose cannot be fooled Naruto. I am surprised you didn't notice my little illusion,**___Kyuubi appeared right in front of Naruto with a slightly disappointed expression on his face. The small pulse in the air disappeared with Kyuubi's appearance.

It was mainly due to Naruto's bad mood that Kyuubi had an unhappy look; he had never known Naruto to be an unhappy person for long. The Naruto he knew and helped form would seize any opportunity he could and mold it to his advantage.

Naruto just huffed at Kyuubi and walked past him. _**I guess I was right. He is going to take his time,**___Kyuubi thought away from Naruto.

"So what now? You took me away from my home. Are we just gonna wander around?" Naruto asked, rudely sitting on his haunches, tails lashing out angrily facing away from Kyuubi.

_**He'll abuse his time,**___"We are going to hide for a few years," Kyuubi said after his mental musing.

"Why are we hiding?" Naruto asked in the same tone, "It is not as though anything can harm 'The Almighty Nine-Tailed Fox'," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He did not spare a glance at Kyuubi, he just kept staring out into the small, drenched, and dark meadow that was below the tree they had slept in. He did not feel that Kyuubi deserved his gaze.

"Just because I am powerful does not mean that I am arrogant and ostentatious with my power. And we are hiding so that the hype of your disappearance disappears as well," Kyuubi answered. His lack of irritation towards Naruto's disrespect irritated Naruto. "But first, we need to get a few things from the village near here," Kyuubi finished.

"What could you possibly need?" Naruto asked harshly.

"You'll see," Kyuubi answered, smirking.

"Can you stop being so damn vague about everything and just answer my question?" Naruto demanded, truly angered by Kyuubi's casual feel towards everything.

"It's in my nature to be unclear about things Naruto. Don't you know anything about foxes? You're going to start behaving the same way," Kyuubi said with a slight smirk on his face.

"Ughh. Your soooo…Grrrrr…never mind. Where is this village you're talking about?" Naruto huffed again with an unnerving growl. The grass below him charred from the heat he was emitting out of frustration and anger.

"Well, we can't go strolling in the way we are, so change and follow me," Kyuubi said as he burst into flames, only for them to die down a moment later revealing him in his most human form.

"We will put the scarves on when we get closer so we may wear them without issues for as long as possible. Cannot predict the unpredictable," Kyuubi spoke, turning around and heading in the opposite direction.

Naruto just grumbled to himself. Getting back on all fours he turned to follow Kyuubi. In a quick burst of flames, Naruto was back in his half demon form, emerging from the meadow to see Kyuubi petting a fox. Naruto leaned against the tree in an annoyed fashion and said, "Will you leave him alone. It's gonna be dark before we even get there."

_**Run along friend. The truth then the trick,**_ Kyuubi thought mutually. After the fox bowed to Kyuubi and Naruto, he left. Kyuubi looked at Naruto who was about to ask him what he was thinking about. "It's just a saying among foxes," Kyuubi answered waving off suspicion. "Let's go."

Kyuubi started to walk in the direction of a part of the rain clouds that seemed to be lit up.

"I hate the rain," Naruto complained as he set off following Kyuubi.

Five minutes, one kilometer, and a rain-like downpour of Naruto's complaining later, the scarves were on. Kyuubi adorned the same black clothing under his cloak that Naruto remembered from his dream. Minus the Kyuubi title on the back again to ward off suspicion.

People could be seen running with umbrellas through the village's gates and hiding under objects for protection from the rain. The walls were certainly not as impressive in size as Konoha's great walls, but the reminder hit Naruto regardless.

Naruto's looming depression was interrupted by Kyuubi. _**Now this village may not be as large as Konoha, but they have some very capable shinobi. It is vital that we are not found out. If we are an unpleasant task will present itself. So**__**,**__** mask your chakra so I don't have to anymore,**_ Kyuubi thought, then sent Naruto the knowledge of how to do so.

Naruto was curious about what Kyuubi had meant by the last bit, but just brushed it off. He waved in his chakra like he was trying to tame a sea, vast and raging, but this sea belonged to him and it followed his command.

They emerged from the dark, damp foliage cloaked in red and black. The guards at the front gate asked what they were planning to do in the city. It was the usual protocol for a shinobi village. Kyuubi took it as an opportunity to quickly whip up a lie.

"State your business!" the gate guard demanded.

"My brother and I are just here to spend a night out of the rain," Kyuubi answered, removing his hood and gesturing in his mind for Naruto to do the same. The resemblance between the two certainly was convincing.

"Names and country of birth," the guard demanded. He seemed irritated by his job, making it all the more easy to gain access.

"My name is Inari Kitsu and this is my brother Riyuu Kitsu; we are both from Fire Country," Kyuubi lied. Naruto felt a mild twinge from the word 'brother', but brushed it off. He was more shocked at how well the lie flowed from Kyuubi. It encouraged him to contradict his already dwindling trust in the fox.

The guard's partner had been checking them over for any non-civilian-like chakra signature. He did not find anything odd about the two so he nodded his approval to the more social, albeit more angry of the two.

"One last question. Why are you wearing ninja attire? Civilians are not granted access to Ninja equipment in any village," the guard asked speculatively.

Naruto thought Kyuubi's melody of lies was about ready to sound out of tune. "Before we set out on our journey, we were given these by our cousin. Her name is Hinai Kitsu and she is a genin ninja of the Leaf Village. She wanted us to be able to protect ourselves from the elements and her gifts have done a great job." The delivery flowed like the water in the eaves troughs.

The guards were convinced. "Very well. Might we suggest you take to staying at the Marble Water Inn? Seeing as how this is a time of year where we have many tourists who come to escape from the colder weather in Lightning country. It is a very costly place, but due to its expense, you will not have to deal with many tourists," the guard suggested.

"No worries about the money. Thank you for the recommendation," Kyuubi said as they were given a pass, and a map to lead them to the hotel.

The walk was uneventful and silent. Naruto was constantly reminded of Konoha as he looked around. It was clear that this village had been inspired by Konoha's architecture and cultural style. The overall layout of the city was similar and it was a constant weight on Naruto's already withering support for composure.

Before Naruto knew it and to his relief, they arrived in front of the hotel. It was in a wealthier part of the city. If the way people were dressed was not a clear indication, then the variety of expensive foreign vehicles that lined the side of the street certainly was. The fact that there were automobiles at all spoke highly of the place, for such a luxury was rare and had few roads to travel on.

The hotel itself was very tall. Craning his neck to look up, Naruto noticed that the ever darkening sky was now black and the top of the building was obscured by the rain and low hanging clouds.

Entering the hotel gave someone a feeling of confidence and importance, as if they were superior to others just because they were in such a place. This arrogance was what distracted Naruto from his depression, if only a little. The beautiful stones and calm Zen feel to the main lobby were soothing. The smell of the building as it was inhaled by their excessively sensitive noses alone was rich and soothing. Kyuubi had to agree. The materials were of the finest grade and everything was arranged in an open way. Soothing music played around the calm lobby populated by the few evening dwellers that were staying at the hotel. Water trickled, in a harmonious melody with the music, from a wall of stone that was a gentle waterfall.

Kyuubi led him to the front desk. _**I'll spoil him. While he is distracted with this place and what's going to happen when I leave, I shall go do what we came here to accomplish. He should not be hungry for another few days.**___Kyuubi thought.

"Hello and welcome to the Marble Water Inn. How may I help you this evening?" a kind and attractive young woman asked from behind the elegant-looking front desk.

"I would like one of your finest suites please. Money is no object here. My brother and I have come a long way and would very much like to indulge." Kyuubi held true to his little lie, as he made the arrangements for their room.

Naruto was never one to desire the finer things out there. This hotel was something he would have never even dreamed of entering. He was always asked to leave the nicer places in Konoha. With the memories of his home he was thrown back in to sadness. He felt guilty for being in such a place; he felt he did not deserve to be there. Konoha's fox bane having the opportunity to indulge in an extremely luxurious hotel — It didn't seem right to him.

Kyuubi again took Naruto from his thoughts. _**Let's go.**___"Come on Riyuu. I got us a very big suite."

They were led to a hallway of elevators, two on each side of the hall. The wall opposite to where they entered was all glass, giving a pleasant view of a rock garden court yard. It was gently lit by well-placed and hidden lights that emphasized various statues.

In a way, it reminded Naruto of the Hokage monument being lit up at night, and then who his father was. _How could he do that to me? I was his son and he cursed me to a life of grief. I don't even know how I even feel about him. I want to hate him for what he did to me, but he's my father and was my hero__,_Naruto thought as he entered the elevator, which had a glass wall similar to the hall they were previously in.

They were given a card by the receptionist after she swiped it over a stainless steel box that scanned the card. Before she left she told them how to use the card. "This card will automatically take you to your floor. You may also use it to access other facilities in the hotel. Have a good evening and enjoy your stay at the Marble Water Inn."

A magnificent view of the city, blurred by the rain and muffled by the darkness, grew as they ascended to their designated floor.

_**Your father wanted you to be seen as a hero Naruto**__**. H**__**e never meant for the village to treat you so vilely,**___Kyuubi interrupted Naruto's dark pondering.

The rest of the ride up was uneventful. Naruto did not want to talk to Kyuubi. The only thing that would achieve in his mind would be more confusion and anger. He was too mentally drained to engage in such emotions.

They were alerted that they had arrived on their floor by an automated voice. "You have arrived on the twenty-second floor. Your room is suite 2200: The Cascading Gaze Suite. Enjoy your stay at the Marble Water Inn."

"You got us a suite. How are you able you afford that? You have no human money," Naruto asked, surprised he was speaking a little more elegantly than usual. The elevator doors opened.

"I told you, not a minute ago, I got us a suite. And see, I told you that you would begin to behave like me. Do not worry; your personality is you own and always will be," Kyuubi stated the reassurance, as he heard Naruto's reaction echo through his head, the statement about his lack of money ignored.

"Whatever. Let's just go in. Why you spent money on a room when we aren't even going to sleep is beyond me," Naruto said, walking out of the elevator. "Where is the room?" Naruto questioned. The hallway had no doors. It just curved around a wall that had a calmly lit painting hung on it.

"The floor is the room, Naruto. I got the best suite they had. Were you not paying attention when I was making the arrangements?" Kyuubi teased, knowing full well that Naruto had been distracted, "and, in regards to the money… Well, my age should answer that for you. It's only natural that wealth would accumulate over time."

He walked past Naruto and around the left side of the wall casually.

Naruto was a little shocked. _Why would he spend so much money?_he thought as he followed Kyuubi. What he saw when he arrived around the wall was beyond anything he could have imagined as luxury.

There was a main sitting room with windows viewing the dark, wet city. The seating area was lowered in the floor to allow a good view through the windows from anywhere in the room. Modern furniture with crisp lines and fine art decorated the room. Calm music was echoing seamlessly off the walls. Balancing colors, soothing stones and calm lighting finished the room.

"I think you deserve this, Naruto," Kyuubi said, observing the room.

He then turned to Naruto with an indifferent look. "And I… Well I would not settle for anything less, unless the mood strikes me. Getting back to nature is a way of cleansing the soul, which needs to be done as a fox, but the reason for today was to avoid suspicion and that is our main goal. Another reason for the treatment is this is going to be a troublesome night for you. Now that the cat is out of the bag, so are its possessions… or should I say fox and tricks," Kyuubi pondered with a clawed finger tapping his chin.

"Well, aren't you the pampered one? And, what do you mean by possessions or tricks or whatever?" Naruto asked, anger gently lacing his voice.

Kyuubi went and sat down on one of the comfortable looking couches after removing his scarf. He took on a more serious look to avoid upsetting Naruto. "There were a few things that happened to you when you were a child that would not be conducive to keeping a child sane while growing up, so… I took the memories from you." Kyuubi could feel the temper rising in Naruto. "You will understand why, Naruto. Do not get angry."

"I don'ULL!" Naruto, carefully put one of his clawed fingers in his mouth to feel his tongue with a mildly shocked look on his face. With eyebrows high and eyes wide he pulled it out. There was a bit of blood mixed with saliva where he touched. The wound on his tongue steamed shut a moment later. The blood still tasted profoundly good, but to Naruto's relief, he remained in his right mind. "How you talk so well with these damned fangs is beyond me. And, as I was saying, I do not understand even a quarter of what you do. Why should I not get angry when you have taken things from me without my permission? Hmph? How you did is probably another question you will evade answering." It was spoken with the predictable glare.

Kyuubi stifled a laugh. _**Wow…that was…cute.**___"Naruto, as I said, you will understand why I took them and how I took them is oddly simple. I asked you to give them to me and you did. You were albeit ignorant of the transaction. In return I would heal a wound or something to keep the balance. Not that I would not have healed them anyway, it is just that being sealed in you did not give me much to repay you with, and part of keeping you naïve was to make you think things were fair."

"How could you ask me for memories without me having any recollection of it?" Again, he was mildly shocked at his elegant phrasing.

"Naruto, whenever you had a quandary, like back with Sasuke, you would appear before my cage. Why you did, I still do not understand, but it happened and happened far too often. Your figure would mumble your problems and I would hear them. I could ask you to do anything and you would be to deep in thought to object to anything I said as long as you were compensated." Kyuubi gestured for Naruto to sit.

Naruto refused, even though he wanted to. The idea that Kyuubi could make him do something without his judgement and opinion in the matter was the main element that prevented him from sitting. He was not one to desire manipulation and did not want Kyuubi to think he could use him.

"For example if you failed a test and you were upset, your doppelgänger would appear. I would hear how important this test was to you and I would ask you to give me the memory so you weren't upset anymore." Kyuubi continued to urge Naruto to sit.

Again, Naruto refused so Kyuubi just continued, "It was as simple as that. Though in the cases where I took a memory, it was much more serious. There were about eight times I did this." Kyuubi's face took on a slightly mournful expression. "One though… One was much more devastating than the rest and will overshadow the others. It was the first one so, in all likelihood, it will be the first you remember. So, there will really only be one great shock." Kyuubi was rather hesitant about this which unnerved Naruto.

"When is this going to start?" Naruto asked, feeling a little nervous.

"Most likely after I leave. I have to go acquire a few things and find out when we can travel to our destination with the least possible threat of exposure. I'm not going anywhere for another few hours, so you don't have to worry until then." He just had the casual, calm expression that Naruto was finding to be the usual from Kyuubi when he, himself, was going through something upsetting. Though, to see Kyuubi back to normal mildly relieved Naruto.

"Why do you keep informing me of things last minute and what does your relation to where I am have anything to do with my memories returning?" Naruto asked, still standing with his arms crossed and a mixture of expressions on his face.

"You had absolutely no desire to talk to me last night, therefore I remained quiet. I have been with you since the day you were born, Naruto. Bound. Caged. Irrevocably linked. It would only be natural for there to be some side-effects from separation. I am going to take a bath and relax while I wait. You're free to join me, or you could go swimming; there is an infinity pool on the balcony overlooking the city and the rain is clearing up." Getting off the couch and heading into the room that appeared to be a bedroom, Kyuubi told Naruto to remove his scarf.

_Did he just ask me to join him in a bath?_ Naruto thought, confused as he removed his scarf.

"I just thought you would like to get cleaned up. If I were you, I would swim nude. It will not feel right if you do not. Again, instincts," the fox deity suggested, rolling his eyes slightly, "Enjoy the room," Kyuubi said, blithely walking into the bedroom that the bathroom was surely connected to.

* * *

Naruto took to the latter suggestion and went for a swim. He ignored what Kyuubi had told him about swimming nude at first, but found it to be very uncomfortable so he swam nude.

It was soothing on his tails and he enjoyed the gentle ribbons of water that flowed over them as he swam. He found swimming underwater to be much more desirable though. Even though he had to flatten his ears to prevent water from entering them, he could hear music playing from hidden speakers in the water. His red slit eyes were not harmed by the gently salted water, so he could observe the peaceful, empty place.

The rain had subsided and he could see the city clearer now. Looking over the edge of the pool, his tails swishing gently behind him and his ears perked up listening to the many different sounds of the city, Naruto floated in thought.

_**I am leaving now. Let me know if you need anything by flashing the lights. You can see this hotel from anywhere in the city and it would take chakra to use our mind link from a distance,**_ Kyuubi informed Naruto.

_How long are you going to be?_Naruto asked rather calmly.

_**He is warming up to me already,**___Kyuubi thought to himself, _**I'll be back before the sun comes up**__**,**__** okay**__**?**____**A**__**nd don't worry**__**,**__** I am not going to be where people can see me when I have to remove my scarf.**___Making sure to explain any future concerns Naruto might have, Kyuubi entered the elevator.

_Good bye._

* * *

After another hour of sitting in the pool Naruto was starting to get very nervous. The realization that there were some holes in his memory scared him and, furthermore, it was enough to make the composed and casual Kyuubi nervous. He did not succeed however and only added to his depression.

Memories flooded his mind as he tried to remember what he had missed, but all he got were verbal insults and awkward situations.

_A woman walked up to him with her son huddled shyly behind her. His mood lightened a little bit thinking that he could make a new friend. __H__e held out his hand to shake hands politely like old-man Hokage told him to __do__ when greeting someone. He closed his eyes and put a smile on his face as the mother approached._

_The next thing he knew__,__ he was on the ground __and__ covered in wet sand with a hurting cheek. "You…you killed my h-husband you little monster__,__" __t__he woman whispered, sobbing__,__"You are __the__ ugly bane of this village. You foul little swine. Just roll over and die. No one cares a—_

"Whewww." Naruto let out a sobbed huff as he remembered the day when he first realized that no one cared about him. A tear slid from his right eye, the ever clearing city lights visible through its warped reflection.

_My own father caused that._

Wanting to distract himself from depressing thoughts he swam his way back over to the pool stairs, embracing the water's flow over his body. After entering the room, not even thinking of being modest with some clothing, he went to take a shower.

The glass door and marble stone soothed Naruto enough to finally relax in the shower without thinking of his past. Sitting on the stone ledge, he unconsciously stroked his tails. He found the fur to be soft and free of any knots or tangles. He was not quite sure what to make of himself embracing his fox side, but he just let the hot water beat down on him, washing away the contemplations.

He was stroking the last of his nine, beautiful, silken tails when his mind went blank.

_It was his fourth birthday and he was in his current apartment from what the smell told him. He could not see because there was a blind fold over his eyes. Someone was singing happy birthday to him in a voice he found familiar._

"_Happy Birthday dear Narutooo. Happy birthday to you. Now__,__ take of your blind fold and look at what I got you for your birthday. I think you're gonna like it__,__" The familiar voice said._

_He lifted his arms up and removed the blind fold._

Naruto's eyes dilated beyond comprehension; his body stilled in the shower.

_Deep, rose__-__red, naturally__spiky hair__;__ deep blue eyes with a genuine, warm feel emanating from them__;__ narrow familiar face. Naruto knew the boy and knew him to be ten years his senior._

His still figure, sitting in the shower, sobbingly whispered, "Ichirou… Brother."

_Naruto's attention was drawn to the present on the table in front of them. He tore into the brown paper bag and removed its contents. His brother smiled at him when he realized what it was._

"_See__,__ I told you you would like it." __It was__ some ramen cup underwear and a beginner's guide to chakra control. Ichirou was everything Naruto aspired to be. __He was o__ne of village's most talented ninjas__, respected, popular __and shockingly young as well._

_Just then__,__ the door bell rang and Ichirou left to answer it saying he would be right back. Naruto's younger self took this opportunit__y t__o look around the room for a place to hide the book, in case someone broke in again and stole things. Ichirou came back with someone Naruto instantly recognized._

"Itachi!" His still figure almost growled, still in the shower.

"_Good evening__,__ Naruto__.__H__appy fourth birthday__,__" Itachi said formally with a gentle smile. He took his hands out of the black cloak that he was wearing, holding a small present of his own. "I got this for you__,__ with the help of your brother of course."_

_Naruto beamed at the gift and__,__ after it was handed to him__,__ he tore it open. It was a strange kunai with three tines. "That was used by the Fourth Hokage, Naruto, I hope you like it__,__" Itachi said politely._

_Someone knocked on the door instead of using the door bell. Ichirou turned to Itachi and they both nodded at the same time. Naruto was still gawking at the kunai. "Naruto, would you like to go look at the city from the top of the Hokage Monument?" Itachi asked__,__ successfully dragging Naruto's attention away from the kunai as Ichirou went to answer the door._

"_Really!? Can we go now?" Naruto asked, his eyes shining with excitement. From how loud the banging was getting on the door__,__ it was apparent that Ichirou had yet to answer the door._

"_I wouldn't have it any other way__,__" Itachi said__,__ gesturing for Naruto to hop on his back._

"_Wait__! W__hat about big brother?" Naruto asked after he got on Itachi's back._

"_Ichirou will catch up with us__. D__o not worry__,__" Itachi said as he opened the window above where Naruto and Ichirou slept._

_Leaping out of the window__,__ Itachi and Naruto were suddenly blasted to the ground. Itachi managed to redirect most of the blast back at the attacker and still held Naruto as he, a little roughly, landed on the ground._

In the shower, Naruto had a painfully confused expression written across his face. _Why was he defending me?_Tears of blood fell from his tapered eyes, returning them to their stunning blue.

_Itachi remained composed as the attacker emerged from the smoke __and__ headed directly for Naruto __who was still__ on his back. Before __the attacker__ even made a quarter of the journey __to them, __he had a katana protruding from his chest. Behind the now identified tiger ANBU __was Ichirou holding the sword with one hand,__ anger evident in his eyes._

_The ANBU took staggered breaths as he angrily whispered to Ichirou, "You and that disgusting thing are the cancer of this village. I hope you die tonight __'__cause I'm not the only one com–" Ichirou whipped the katana downwards__,__ cutting the man partially in half. Gurgled noises were heard as the corpse fell to the ground. The legs spread apart when it landed__, __and the freshly made incision made them spread __even__ farther. The sight was beyond gruesome._

_Naruto went into a state of shock from the gore. A single drop of blood had drifted through the air __onto__ Naruto's face. Itachi quickly covered his eyes and hid the sight. Naruto felt a little prick on the back of his neck and fell asleep._

* * *

_His eyes groggily opened to a blindingly white room. Once everything was in focus__,__ he could not help but to jump at the ANBU standing in the corner. With mild knowledge of what ANBU were capable of and what happened last night with his brother and Itachi, Naruto's adrenaline kicked in. A hazy red aura surrounded him and he dashed out the hospital door before the ANBU could even react._

_He had no idea where he was when he found his way out of the hospital. Some natural instinct was guiding him to the Hokage tower. People were glaring at him as he ran. He did not understand why they were angry with him__. H__is brother was not around__, s__o the people had no reason to be angry with him. His brother told him people were envious of his skill and did not like him having the ability to out match them._

_The front of the Hokage tower came into sight and he dashed for the entrance__, t__he red aura pushing him faster and faster to get to the old man for help._

_Dashing past the angry secretary and up the stairs__,__ Naruto made it to the __o__ld-man's office. He opened the door to a room full of ANBU and his brother in front of the desk talking to __o__ld-man Hokage._

_Naruto's heart stopped. "Ichirou Uzumaki, you are herby sentenced to death for treason." Ichirou did not argue, did not complain__.__H__e stood there shocked. When he turned to leave with the ANBU restraining him__, h__e looked into the doorway __and __his heart dropped. Naruto's eyes were so angry and confused __that __they __radiated__ power and destruction. Red was all that was seen by Ichirou._

_A blood curdling roar came from the boy __along__ with a pulse of chakra beyond comprehension. The windows shattered and the occupants of the room were thrust back by the immense power. __The Hokage looked at __Naruto__ as ANBU were thrown past him._

___Debris was flying everywhere and walls were imploding._

_He was going to kill the man for warranting his brother's death. The only noise was the powerful, buffeting winds being tossed around the room. Then__,__ Naruto's mind went blank __and __instinct took over._

_The last thing Naruto saw was Ichirou's face in a sad expression, his body __wracked__ with wounds behind the Hokage who was breathing heavily with a hand over his navel. "That was just instinct?" Sarutobi said__,__ shocked. Then Naruto's mind went blank again._

"I… I killed him." Naruto whispered as his hair turned a golden blond color, tails doing the same. The water seemed to wash away the red as though it were blood covering Naruto's tails and hair. The ribbons of red flowed towards the drain in a winding manner, reminding Naruto of a flowing river.

He could not take it: Sasuke's betrayal, Chouji's death, learning his heritage, becoming a demon, leaving his home, and knowing that he killed the last of his family. He passed out, beyond mentally exhausted.

Kyuubi walked into the bathroom and gazed at Naruto's wet form in the shower for a moment, his body naturally curling into a ball with his tails wrapping around him. _**He is not going to be too happy about embracing his history,**___Kyuubi thought as he saw the tears flow from Naruto's closed eyes.

Entering the shower and turning off the water, Kyuubi picked up Naruto's sleeping body. The boy's tails grabbed onto Kyuubi and held him close. He entered the bedroom after drying Naruto off, who was practically hugging him and laid the boy down on the bed.

_**Again with the grip,**___Kyuubi sighed. Kyuubi contemplated what he should do. Since the boy would not let go, he lay down next to the boy who was crying in his sleep and hugged him back.

_**He embraced me and his history.**_

* * *

Memories came rushing back to him and he remembered everything that Kyuubi spoke of. His heart tightened.

The first was with his brother and what had happened with him. He quickly moved on to the next memory, hoping to keep the pain away.

The second was his brother's existence being wiped clean from his mind. He had been asking where Ichirou had gone and began falling into depression.

The third was the following birthday when Itachi gave him a gift and his mind began remembering what had happened the previous year. So, Itachi was cleansed out of his memory.

The fourth was the next birthday. He had gone to join the festival of Kyuubi's fall and was attacked by drunk ninja. Itachi had come and protected him, even though he had no idea who Itachi was. He fell into a state of shock from the gore that was displayed before him.

The fifth was when he had started at the academy and, in his instinctual form, killed a teacher who was trying to rape him.

The sixth was when he was eight and he had gone to see Itachi to ask him about what happened on his birthday. He caught Itachi killing his best friend, Shisui Uchiha, and happened to get caught in Itachi's Tsukuyomi after he had obtained his Mangekyou Sharingan. Itachi, being new to the power, had no control of what he was doing in his mind. Every thought that appeared in his mind would do something to Naruto. It was beyond any torture imaginable and, after it happened, Naruto's mind was cleared of the event and Itachi once again.

The seventh was on his ninth-birthday. He was avoiding everyone by staying in his apartment as he had learned to do over the years. He fell asleep when nightfall came, but was abruptly woken when something came crashing through his window. It was the corpse of a fox, and written in cuts on the side of it were the words 'Die with your filth, Kyuubi'.

Last, and certainly not least, was when he had turned ten. That night, a strange man cloaked in black showed up on his doorstep and asked to come in. He tried to convince Naruto that his life in Konoha was horrible, which was not a far stretch from the truth. He asked Naruto to leave the village with him and told Naruto the truth about the Kyuubi. Naruto went into his instinctual mode and attacked the man who soon vanished.

Naruto sat in his mind, letting it all out. The sewer was becoming cleaner and less flooded the more he cried. He was beginning to understand his life now; why it was him and what had been done, who his friends were and who his enemies were.

His life was finally clear and in his vision and he was able to understand what his role was. He was going to end Orichimaru and return Sasuke. He was going to find out what happened to his brother after he had killed him and he was going to eradicate Madara Uchiha to avenge his family, friends, and himself. That was his resolve.

* * *

It was a cloudy morning and the sky was a light grey. The suite they were in was even more beautiful in the colorless light. Naruto woke from his sleep feeling warm and safe. He had never felt so content and relaxed in his life. It was a feeling of pure serenity and calm. He didn't want it to end. His stomach disagreed though, so he grudgingly began to fully wake.

He opened his eyes to see a sleeping Kyuubi holding him in a caring embrace. He was confused about this, then noticed he was hugging Kyuubi back. Their tails were woven with each other intimately which caused Naruto to blush.

Noticing he was nude, he jumped out of the bed, trying not to disturb Kyuubi. He remembered where he had thrown his clothing and quickly went to change. It seemed right to him, for some reason, to be so close to Kyuubi. They seemed to resonate well, like first and last strings on a guitar. He got changed and decided to get some breakfast since his stomach was constantly complaining.

Once he was fully dressed, he checked on Kyuubi who was still asleep and headed for the elevator. He almost forgot to put his scarf on and bring their card key. Stepping into the elevator caused him to look more closely at the village they were in for a moment. The clouds cast a calming light over the village and made him feel content.

He looked at the floor directory and saw that the breakfast restaurant was on the fourth floor, the number reminding him of his father. He swiped the card and the automated voice asked which floor he would like. "Four please."

"Floor number four: The Water Cafe," the voice said as the doors closed.

During the descent, Naruto felt rather nervous like he was forgetting something. He brushed it off as his stomach growled and he arrived on his designated floor. He stepped out and walked up to a receptionist desk, seeing nothing else. The floor seemed as beautiful as the rest of the hotel, incorporating darker stones and dulled colors. "How may I help you this morning?" the young man asked from behind the high desk.

"Uhh…" not used to such formalities, Naruto bluntly stated, "I'm kinda new to this whole restaurant thing. I've always usually eaten at home. I'm really hungry and just want to eat."

"Well, is it just you this morning or is someone joining you? And, what room are you staying in?" The man asked, politely smiling at Naruto.

"No, my uhh… brother is still sleeping in our room. So it's just me, and I think it was 22…2200."

The man blinked. "You must be very wealthy to be staying in that room. It's almost never used because of its expense. If you'll follow me, I'll seat you."

"Uhh, well my brother has a fair amount of money, so we get by." Naruto bashfully said as he was directed to a table next to a window. He sat down facing outside and was handed a menu. He thanked the man and started to look at his breakfast options.

In the history of humanity, it has always been terrifying just how rapidly chaos can break loose. So, when Naruto was innocently observing his menu and a family walked by, it was this simple combination of elements that lead to utter chaos.

Naruto was eyeing the steak when his scarf was yanked from around his neck. The five year old child, who'd innocently thought that it was a toy, was startled when it burst into flames. The child's screaming was what attracted most of the attention to Naruto. A waiter who was carrying a tray of used dishes was also startled by the burst of flames and dropped the dirty china. A stray knife flew after bouncing from the impact and cut the waiter's wrist.

All eyes were on Naruto's new traits and Naruto's oceanic eyes were on the slit white fabric that was quickly turning red. In the blink of an eye, the waiter's hand was torn off as Naruto tore through his flesh.

The man yelled and tried to yank his hand away, but was soon tied down by Naruto's tails. He passed out as the parents of the innocent toddler grabbed the little boy and ran. Other occupants of the restaurant began rushing out, screaming as Naruto feasted.

Before Naruto could drink anymore of the delectable elixir, he was grabbed by strong arms. They had to be inhuman to have the strength to be able to pull him away from his food. A slit wrist was shoved in his face and he eyed the blood with excitement. The blood flowing from this being was ten times as amazing as his former meal's, so he eagerly drank. After he was satisfied, he let go of the wrist and came to.

He turned to see a confused, and mildly angry looking, Kyuubi. Then, he realized what he had just done. "I guess I was wrong for once. You _were_ hungry," Kyuubi almost smirked, "Do you remember that task I told you about, the one we would have to commit too if we were discovered?"

Naruto nodded remembering him mention it, but having no idea what the task would be. The room quickly filled with shinobi. "Well, we now have to destroy this village." Kyuubi stated.


	4. A Question of Being

Every time I listen to that song I vision something akin to when Kyuubi shows up at the end of the last chapter. I enjoy Wolfmother a fair amount, they really get my adrenaline going and make me just wanna rock out. I'm going see them 11/11/09 in Toronto, so excited. On with the story. This chapter will start in Konoha for various reasons and end with Naruto and Kyuubi erasing the village they are in. It's all within good reason. I do not own Naruto, a Japanese genius does. Thank you to Acaykath for Beta Reading my Story.

Chapter Four: A Question of Being

_I've got the world on a string  
Sitting on a rainbow  
Got the string around my finger  
What a world, what a life I'm in love  
I've got a song that I sing  
I can make the rain go  
Any time I move my finger  
Lucky me, can't you see I'm in love  
Life is a beautiful thing  
As long as I hold the string  
I'd be a silly so-and-so  
If I should ever let it go_

_I've Got the World on a String, Frank Sinatra, Best Of Capitol Years._

"Today is a day of remembrance. A day where we acknowledge our loss and pain. But today is also a celebration of life. Of two Shinobi's lives. Two Shinobi that fought out of rank and brought the enemy down with them. Today we honor Akimichi Chouji, a brave young Shinobi who lost his life defeating an enemy on the mission to retrieve Sasuke Uchiha and today we honor Uzumaki Naruto for greatly influencing the return of Uchiha Sasuke with his passing," Tsunade said, a quiver of anguish laced her voice, but for an entirely different reason that only she and a certain Nara knew of.

"With Naruto's passing, the secrets of his heritage and his tenant now may be revealed. This knowledge was kept secret for Naruto's safety and protection. He was not a foreign baby as many of you were led to believe and he was not an only child. He was the son of the late Yondaime Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and Uzumaki Kushina the Fish ANBU. Naruto's brother passed away eight years ago because of an attempt on Naruto's life. Many would remember Naruto's brother as Konoha's Blood ANBU, but his real name was Ichirou Uzumaki Namikaze. After he passed away, Naruto's mind could not handle the stress so he eventually forgot all about his brother and that is why knowledge of this was buried."

"Now for Naruto's burden. As many of the city's adults already know, the Kyuubi was not destroyed by the Yondaime, Naruto's father, but was sealed away into a container. Naruto was the container for the Kyuubi. He held this burden his entire life, the murderer of his parents, and lived with it. When he accidentally learned of this, he did not let it stain his will and he never held any vendetta against the village for the way he was treated. Naruto is a great example of this village's and this country's Will of Fire and we shall remember him as the courageous young hero that he was." The entire mass of people that were gathered for the funeral were stunned.

Konoha's 'fox bane' was, in reality, it's Prince. They had doubted their Hero's power and cursed his son. The man that saved their entire city from the ferocity of a beast had begotten a child that saved them and they had all mistreated him. With knowledge of his heritage they held no doubts that Naruto was not the demon. The resemblance was uncanny when someone were to see the boy instead of the demon. The shop owner's, the street vendors, the rebellious teenagers, the obnoxious swine, and many others who had cursed Naruto's very existence were drowned by a wave of guilt. What wrong they had done the legacy of their greatest hero?

"Naruto passed away because of the Kyuubi's poisonous chakra running through his system as well as internal damage to his organs. He fought bravely to the end and we shall honor him as the son of our hero Yondaime, as the tamer of the Kyuubi and as a brave Shinobi of this village. Chouji passed away of chakra exhaustion and the use of a near-suicidal jutsu. He brought down his enemies with his mass of will and strength and we shall honor him as part of his clan and as a Shinobi of this village." Tsunade finished.

Tsunade was in a rather tender position. A few months on the job and she had already lost one genin to death and another to unfortunate circumstances that others believed to be death; plus she almost lost the last member of the, oh so important, Uchiha clan to one of the villages greatest traitors. She was up for review and a certain war hawk was going to try and take advantage of that.

Sasuke was found to have suffered injuries from Kyuubi's chakra as well and was too ill to evade the hunter Shinobi sent by Konoha. It turned out that Kyuubi's chakra was eating away at the seal, so it was slowly vanishing and causing a great deal of pain to Sasuke. He was found and brought back to Konoha the day before the funeral and put in a hospital cell so nurses could monitor his condition while he was being restrained. He'd been unconscious when they found him and he was still in the same state.

* * *

Shikamaru was gone after the last words of the ceremony were spoken, struck by pain and loss he made his way back to his home. He felt like what had happened to Chouji was all his fault and that he was the reason the Kyuubi had had a chance to manipulate Naruto. He had failed his mission and lost two good friends.

To reminisce and remember good times and to soothe the aching pain in his heart, Shikamaru had taken a path into the forest where he had always used to lay and watch clouds with Chouji and the rest of his team. His reminiscing was interrupted by the sight of foxes surrounding a morbid scene.

The sight was of two carcasses torn apart. The recent night's rain had washed the blood into the ground, causing the surrounding plants to start growing a mild red tint. The bodies were melding into the ground, mixing with dirt and other various ground debris. It seemed like they were attacked by some horrible monster. There were gashes and cuts from claws and the throat of one was gone, but, in a flash of calm orange light, the small area was cleared of the corpses.

Shikamaru just muttered, "_F__oxes,"_ under his breath. _True to __their__ trait of being mischievous. Masters of deception. Doing something like this while everyone is busy grieving._

* * *

"We have to what?" Naruto asked.

"Just as I said Naruto. Since your unexpected hunger has revealed just what we are, we have to destroy this village," Kyuubi stated casually as he threw a sword at Naruto.

"How come you're never hungry and what's with the Katana?" Naruto asked, irritated as he caught the sword.

"By the order of this village, you two are under arrest for: trespassing without permission in a Shinobi village, attacking a civilian, and now plotting to destroy this village," one of the ANBU stated. He was clearly the captain.

"I'll answer that later, Naruto. Just store the Katana," Kyuubi said, turning to face the ANBU, "And first of all, your pathetic guards let us walk right in — we had permission — and second, you will not be taking us in. We have to abolish you and this village."

"If you will not come willingly, then we will force you," the ANBU said, tone as cold as ice.

"Naruto, if you find yourself in a troublesome situation, just use your imagination. Okay?" Kyuubi said as he vanished. The ANBU all tensed waiting for an assault. A moment later the earth shook with the realization of an explosion.

"But, I don't want to kill anyone," Naruto said to the empty air. "These people haven't done anything to deserve death. This is wrong, Kyuubi," Naruto said, the name made some of the ANBU tense.

_**Naruto**__**,**__** this village is a cancer. That hotel was built from stolen money. This village is the reason for over seventy percent of modern crime in Fire **__**C**__**ountry. That man who tried to rape and kill you**__**,**__** Naruto, originally came from this village with orders to kill you. The group of **__**n**__**inja who attacked your brother, Itachi and you that night all originated from this village**__**. T**__**hey were told to kill you and your brother. The village council did not want to seem like they were disobeying your father's last wish and did not want the Third to suspect anything, so they tried to order your death through this village. Not to mention that this village had a great influence on the reason for the Third Ninja War. I was learning this last night while you were being enlightened. **_

"Those ninja were from here?" Naruto said to himself anger building inside of him.

"Enough of this rambling! Who the hell are you calling Kyuubi? That beast was destroyed by the Yondaime Hokage of Konoha twelve years ago," The ANBU demanded.

"That _beast,_ was the person who was just in this room," Naruto said, eyes sharp, "And he was not destroyed. My father sealed him inside of me the day I was born. My father, the leader of that ungrateful village Konoha, and you filthy ANBU are the reason I killed my brother!" Naruto vanished as all the ANBU tensed.

He reappeared in front of the ANBU captain as a wave of immense, burning chakra escaped from him. _What have I become? _Naruto questioned after he slashed through the quivering ANBU with the Katana. He looked around the restaurant. The rest of the room's occupants had all collapsed; some threw up, others fainted. His mere chakra took out a team of ANBU. The katana vanished in a burst of flames.

_**You have to destroy this village with me**__**,**__** Naruto. Remember**__**,**__** you can manipulate the elements with only a simple motion and thought. You have to get rid of them**__**. I**__**t is vital.**_

Naruto was hesitant. _How do I know that __you're__ not lying__?__Y__ou could have just said those things to tr__y a__nd persuade me to loathe this village__._

_**You cannot lie in your mind**__**;**__** you can only ignore. What I spoke of before is the truth of this village, Naruto. This village is the reason for much of your pain.**_

_**You have to let go Naruto**__**. J**__**ust let go and follow your instincts. **_The words echoed in Naruto's head.

He felt a minor twinge from where his tails sprouted as he positioned his hands in front of himself. "Wh…what a-are yo-you?" The bloody mess of an ANBU managed to ask from behind his blood covered mask.

_**You are the Jubi no Kitsune, Naruto, **_Kyuubi stated.

Naruto was completely nescient of how he should answer such a question. He was confused by the question. He was not quite sure of what he was anymore. First it was a human building his way to the top; then a sacrifice and cage for a horrible beast, subjected to a life of misery; then a demon with equal power to the Kyuubi and a mind crazed with bloodlust. But now, he did not quite think Kyuubi was so much the demon people claimed him to be, and if that was so, then what was he.

Kyuubi had taken away his pain, taken away his misery, and taken away his unhappiness. How could Kyuubi be a demon if he was so kind to Naruto, protecting Naruto from a childhood full of nightmares and loss of innocence? What was Kyuubi when shined in this light? How could Naruto compare? What was Naruto?

Was Naruto the boy who lived a life of lies and deceit; royalty obscured by the shadow of a beast; born into a family destroyed by everything, but the beast he held? Who was he?

He let go of the energy he was going to form in his hands and clutched the base of his tails as he fell to his knees. He was in pain, an immense amount of pain. It was like what happened back at his apartment all over again. He felt the needle feeling, but only on his spine. He could not make a sound, just gargled noises and fox whines. Then, a spike of chakra, so immense that all the windows of the hotel shattered, washed over his body. From the base of his spine appeared a tenth tail.

The pain stopped. He felt absolutely nothing—no pain, no emotions, no fear. The only thing in his mind was the question: Just who and what was Namikaze Naruto? What purpose was there for him to exist?

The hidden pillar that was the foundation of his entire life once again rescued his crumbling structure. _**You are **__**t**__**he Ten-Tailed Demon Fox as I once was, Naruto. You are a pure hearted perso**__**n w**__**ith good intentions and you will protect those closest to you with all your strength. I have given you the strength and now yo**__**u a**__**re going to change the world with your heart. You are a god of will and fire.**_

The ANBU who had managed to remain conscious took in the sight of the new appendage and was awed at the power. This was a being of supreme energy and grace. A god on Earth.

Naruto's clenched eyes opened.

* * *

Kyuubi pointed his finger at the building he had just jumped from. It was a tall business building with countless windows and offices. Really, the only difference between this village and Konoha was the more modern buildings. Konoha had to stick to its culture and keep low to the ground for safety measures while this village had the freedom to build up. As Kyuubi descended, he noticed thousands of overpaid consumers lined the floors. He smirked.

At the tip of his finger, a small ball of fire appeared. It seemed harmless and looked like it was going to blow out as he fell, but then it began swirling around so rapidly that it looked akin to a small sun. It became so bright that the surrounding area darkened under its beaming light. As Kyuubi released the small sun's power, it was the only light visible.

In a thin line of almost white hot light, it destroyed the building floor by floor as Kyuubi moved his finger up and down effortlessly. It was almost as if he was coloring with a drawing utensil of chaos and destruction. Explosion after explosion went off as his marker's ink colored the building. The whole scene happened in rather quick succession and was a minor display of the power Kyuubi possessed.

As Kyuubi continued to descend, he turned to face the hotel and did the same to three other buildings. Feeling the immense chakra pulsing out of the hotel he said, "Time for him to apply what he has embraced."

_What am I, who am I? _He heard Naruto's voice echo in his head, emotionless.

_**You are **__**t**__**he Ten-Tailed Demon Fox as I once was, Naruto. You are a pure hearted perso**__**n w**__**ith good intentions and you will protect those closest to you with all your strength. I have given you the strength and now yo**__**u a**__**re going to change the world with your heart. You are a god of will and fire, **_Kyuubi truthfully answered.

As he observed the hotel, all the windows began to glow with an intense white light. The whole city darkened under the building's newfound glow and then the building exploded into millions of pieces, littering the city with its debris.

Suddenly, Kyuubi was jerked out of his destructive coloring.

"THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU KYUUBI!" Naruto shouted as he hugged Kyuubi, a huge smile on his face and his tails swaying happily behind him. His soft, golden ear was gently poking Kyuubi in the eye. His very being lightened the sky.

_**Now **__**that's**__** the enthusiastic Naruto I know and love.**_ "Your more than welcome Naruto. Now, can we finish what we started?" Kyuubi asked hugging him back.

"All right," Naruto said. His mood still bright, but with a hint of mild worry.

They landed gently in the middle of an intersection and, moments later, were surrounded by hundreds of shinobi. It was a surreal and very strange scene for most who observed. Landing on the ground from over two-hundred feet in the air as though it were an effortless feat, were two teenage boys with fox traits.

The apparent leader of the village's shinobi stepped out of the crowd. "Who are you and what do you think you are doing in our village? If you think two children such as yourselves can waltz into a shinobi village and hope to succeed in destroying it, then you're very arrogant and stupid," he shouted with an angered expression painted on his face. He was a built man with wizened features and a ghastly air about him.

Kyuubi spoke first. "We are not children. I am the Kyuubi no Kitsune."

Kyuubi turned to Naruto. "And, I am the Jubi no Kitsune."

The man's scowling face continued to disfigure. "You claim you are a beast that was sealed over twelve years ago and later destroyed?" the man said gesturing to Kyuubi, "And, you claim to be a beast that does not even exist? I don't see two blood thirsty animals. All I see are a couple of very foolish and ignorant teens. Now, answer my question or I, personally, will force the knowledge from you."

Naruto had a natural hate for the man itching at him. The moment he started to speak, Naruto wanted to make the man suffer. The smell the man reeked of was familiar and angering.

Kyuubi stepped up and connected the scent to the familiarity. "You're the man who led the team that was asked to kill the sons of the Fourth Hokage." Many of the surrounding Shinobi tensed mildly.

"That is this villages most prized success. The murder of a dead Hokage's two pathetic children — one even killed the other — and the end of a horrid beast which you claim to be. How do you know about that? It's a rather closely guarded secret." The man was not daunted by Kyuubi's knowledge, but curious. Kyuubi took a step back from the scene. The man smirked thinking he had intimidated the boy.

Gold lined Naruto's sapphire eyes and pungent orange chakra beat off of him. The surrounding ground was disfigured as Naruto's figure vanished.

Naruto appeared in front the man so quickly that he hardly had any time to defend. With his knowledge and experience, the man managed two arms, enforced with chakra, crossed over each-other before Naruto punched. The punch was so powerful that a crater formed fifty feet around the man and toppled some of the other Shinobi. The man realized his arms were broken as he continued to hold off the blow. Time almost stopped.

"My name is Namikaze Uzumaki Naruto, son of the Yondaime Hokage Namikaze Minato and Uzumaki Kushina, and brother of Namikaze Uzumaki Ichirou. I am the Jubi no Kitsune and I am going to end you," Naruto whispered to the man struggling under his power.

He then kicked the struggling man in the chest after a graceful maneuver to open the man's defense, which in turn sent the man skidding along the ground for a couple hundred feet at a hardly visible pace. The shinobi leader hit the side of a building with such velocity it's side crumbled and cratered. A dust cloud impaired the view.

All the surrounding Shinobi went to engage Naruto but, before they could do anything, Naruto vanished. His figure appeared in front of the dust cloud and some of the Shinobi went to run after him, but their path was soon blocked by a smirking Kyuubi. "Pesky humans."

* * *

Naruto entered the brown puffs of dirt and grabbed the man. His eyes were the most beautiful mixture of blue and gold as they pierced the man's soul.

"You… You're supposed to be dead," the man whispered out of a blood filled mouth, "We were given orders to kill the two of you. The first mission ended with your brother's death and the next with yours. How are you still alive?"

"That would be my doing, and a certain Uchiha's," Kyuubi interrupted, appearing right beside Naruto, "I kept him healthy and cleansed of anything negative while Itachi Uchiha protected him from harm. That man you sent to kill him a few years later was a pedophile and Naruto's instincts killed him. Itachi arrived late on the scene then reported it to the Third Hokage. Naruto's unconscious form was in the room which is how I know this."

"The Third then sent back an impostor to inform you that the mission was a success. The council was put on an exceptionally tight and short leash after that, so you weren't sent any other orders," Kyuubi stated.

Naruto was imagining all the horrible things he would like to do to the man. Kyuubi could hear the ideas running through Naruto's head and stated, "Any last words?"

The man hung from Naruto's clawed hand in shock. All his power, all his pride, and all his skill was just brushed away like dust by a boy. He had manipulated his way into power and killed any who had gotten in his way. All the years of doing people's dirty work had paid off and landed him as a politically — as well as physically — powerful figure. His training had hardened him into a powerful shinobi who could stand up to just about anyone, and yet, with two hits this boy had brought him to his knees.

A boy, a mission, a task he had completed successfully had come back and shamefully degraded him into a helpless wimp. His greatest achievement was, in reality, his most severe failure.

"Thought so," Kyuubi said as Naruto sunk his teeth into the man's throat. His chakra beat off of him, angrily searing the man's flesh. The blood in the man's neck dried from the heat and becoming truly painful as the blood continued to flow, scraping through his system. Naruto and Kyuubi heard the man gasp as though he just suffered a heart attack. Then his eyes went a pale white and he looked up at the sky. After a short moment, the man died.

Naruto removed his teeth from the man's neck, wearing an indifferent expression on his face. He stared at the corpse in front of him and watched as the rain washed away the blood flaking off of the man's wound. Satisfaction relaxed his mental being, but there was a splinter — curiosity.

The taste on his teeth was soothing and satisfying, but he had tasted it with a pure intent to kill and that fact poured apprehension into his system. He had abolished one of the people responsible for his ignorant horror of a life and was completely content because of it. Was that right?

It began to rain again as screaming was heard. People were running through the streets, trying to find safety and escape the danger. The few left over Shinobi Kyuubi had ignored had all fled, trying to find their families.

"If we are found out, Naruto, it will cause another war. More than ten times this village's population will be killed and they will be innocent people. We have to be rid of this village," Kyuubi injected in to the close silence.

He knew what he could do, how to finish the city. With the power he felt, it would be effortless. But, he felt he had done enough damage. The most beautiful structure he had ever seen was destroyed by him, the city's Shinobi system was in ruins because of him, and now the village had to be destroyed because of him.

Naruto cursed his naivety and incompetence.

He was the reason they were found out. He had carelessly gone to eat when he knew of what it was something like him had to eat. Irony was again at work in one of its many forms. _A __kind god__,_ as far as Kyuubi was concerned, could only remain kind by killing.

Kyuubi took his silence as a sign of Naruto's mood and continued to level the city. He started using earthquakes and fissures instead of fire. Naruto watched in mild fascination while Kyuubi destroyed the city. With a graceful wave of his hands, earth would kick up and crush itself. Buildings would be reduced to rubble with the cities people being buried underneath the destruction. Naruto could feel Kyuubi's pulses of chakra reforming the land and knew he could easily do the same.

Kyuubi then let out a net of chakra to kill whatever was left within the city. Animals were left alone since they were harmless and could not be used for information and whatever was not destroyed was run through by the net.

After Kyuubi felt no life left within ten kilometers of where they stood, he stopped. What was a city not more than an hour ago was now rubble and mud. A once populated area with thousands was now vacant and desolate.

It continued to rain as they stared out into the silent massacre they had caused. Naruto began questioning just how powerful Konoha must have been to stop Kyuubi.

"I was not in my right mind that night, Naruto. I was using everything I had and Konoha stopped me. Konoha is by far one of the most powerful forces on earth. This village hardly compared," Kyuubi said, sitting down on a boulder. He was looking at the ever soaking ruins of a landscape.

"Can I ask you a question?" Naruto asked, voice a little shaky. Why would he be nervous?

"Sure," Kyuubi answered, already knowing what the question was and bracing himself for how to answer.

"How come I have another tail?" Naruto said, holding his tails out as proof, the ten of them shining a beautiful hue of gold in the wet and grey light, matching his ears and hair well. He was a little anxious about revealing his new appendage.

"Because you have your instincts. Have you ever heard of the Sage of Six Paths?" Kyuubi asked.

"Shouldn't you know everything I know?" Naruto asked in return, slightly mocking to ease the tense mood. He felt a twinge of chakra in the distance.

"I only know the bad Naruto, not the common or good... if there was any. Anyway, let us walk and talk. We need to leave this place. As I am sure you've noticed, there are some travelers coming." They were a while away, but it was always better to be safe than sorry.

"Okay," Naruto agreed as they began running West, "And I heard that he was just some legend; like someone could possibly come up with all the justus."

"He was quite real, Naruto. He is the reason I only have nine tails now," Kyuubi said. The edge of the forest was coming into view.

"What does this have to do with me having ten tails then?" Naruto asked.

"You feel how powerful you are, correct?" Naruto nodded towards him. "It's scary just how powerful you feel. What I did moments ago, you felt you could easily do, correct?" Naruto nodded again.

"And, if you haven't noticed yet, you unconsciously get sick of human blood. It's only satisfying at first, but never makes you content. You end up having to find a release, or something else to feed on. The release is, well, a sexual release. And, the only way to sate your bloodlust is to feed on another demon's blood, or else you will go on a rampage trying to find satisfying blood," Kyuubi half explained.

"So imagine you are hungry like you were in the restaurant and I did not come to satisfy your hunger. You would have tried to find a sexual release, but you would have torn anyone you touched apart. The other night you managed to mount that foolish boy by pure luck; that usually never happens. Now, imagine people trying to stop you. Do you think they could?" Kyuubi asked Naruto. By now they were in the forest.

Naruto thought about people trying to stop him. Kyuubi had just leveled a city and he had felt he could have done that with his eyes closed. It was not an arrogant piece of knowledge, but he could feel it; he knew it to be fact.

"Well, I was once in that situation. With no control, a blind desire for destruction because I was unsatisfied." Kyuubi looked away in shame. His posture took on a more ungraceful facade as they ran.

"Then he appeared with the eyes of a god, the bloodline limit that started them all, a doujustu so powerful that it put the Sharingan to shame, the Rinnigan." Kyuubi looked ahead. "He began to fight me and defend his city. The techniques he used and the movements he made were flawless and powerful. A sad fact was that I was still more powerful than him and would not be stopped by physical means. He wanted to end the destruction I was causing more than anything, so with a combination of extraordinary jutsu he sealed me away in himself and sealed my body away within the moon. He became my Jinchuuriki, the first Jinchuuriki." It began raining even harder as they began abusing the tree branches.

The rain seemed to not even exist with the mood that hung over the two, but it was always there. The mood was somewhat pleasant, no matter where they were, as long as they were together, but the water continued to fall. With Naruto's sensitive eyes, he could see the splashes created whenever the drops would be stopped by earth.

"During the rest of his life, he got to know me. He realized that I was not a heartless demon with the passion of killing as my only acquaintance. He came to respect me, and over the years we put our minds together and composed a way for me not to lose control. That is how I came to only have nine tails. When The Sage of Six Paths died, he split up my chakras and created the nine bijuu. The eight other bijuu are my harmful instincts." Kyuubi then stopped which in turn caused Naruto to stop. The scene was covered in a vale of grey and green light as they stood in the rain.

"Why did you stop?" Naruto asked, referring to Kyuubi's movement as well as his speech.

"You have ten tails, Naruto, because you are whole unlike me." Kyuubi looked down at the damp branch below him. "The plan that the Sage and I created backfired. The bijuu were all to remain under my control so I put each of them into an elemental dimension, but with the Sage's legacy of Ninja and justu, power became mankind's greatest desire. They went after the bijuu to abuse their power, creating jinchuuriki after jinchuuriki. My instincts became family heirlooms, passed down from generation to generation." Kyuubi's red eyes shone brilliantly as he looked at Naruto.

"I hate to see a great man's legacy disgraced such as his has been, and how your brother and you were treated as your father's legacy. You may be thinking that I am not much of a demon, but, believe me, I care not for the lives of humans. Few have ever earned my respect, and they always seem to be the ones that are disgraced by lesser humans. The only reason I would ever even get involved in the lives of humans would be to protect my land. Preventing war is my ultimate goal because war destroys life."

Naruto wasn't really getting the answer he wanted, but was concerned about Kyuubi being upset so he chose not to redirect the conversation.

Kyuubi could tell he was worrying Naruto with his mixture of emotions and evasion of his question, so he answered, "You have ten tails, Naruto, because your mental and natural being have never been tampered with. Unlike me, your instincts are still there."

Then Kyuubi explained why it was not immediate, "It took time because my blood would only mix with your being if I was away from you; yet another reason why I left last night. While I was away, my blood formed to your chakra and soul. Your memories, your heart, your desires, and your identity are no longer hidden from you. You have become a pure being because of this."

"It has been many years since the time of the Sage of Six Paths and over that time I have found a way to perfect the idea he and I had so long ago. The solution I have found was greatly influenced by what we tapped into and it will be the end of all our problems," Kyuubi stated, taking off again.

"And what is that solution?" Naruto asked on Kyuubi's heels.

"Fox blood."

* * *

As Shikamaru entered his home, he plugged his ears to avoid having to hear his troublesome mother rant to his father. The traditional Japanese style home was large and flat, so Shikamaru's room was a great deal away from all the noise, a fact that relieved him.

He successfully avoided the arguing and, to his surprise, his mother was worried that him being a ninja was too dangerous. But, that was not all he heard. His mother also complained about something that would not be healthy for the village if it became common. In his mother's opinion, Tsunade, was not doing a very good job as Hokage.

He had too much on his mind and tried to relax: the death of his greatest friend on a mission he lead, the tough position Tsunade was now in, Naruto's endless list of issues, and where he fit into all of these situations.

Meditating he tried. It worked to a degree, but he found himself concerned about Naruto. He felt horrible for the poor boy, or fox, or whatever it was that Kyuubi had turned him into. To lose everything valuable to you and be completely ignorant of it would certainly be healthy but, even with his naivety, Naruto's life was still horrible.

Becoming the demon he unconsciously spent his entire life trying to prove he wasn't, was no doubt a horrible event in his life. And now, he apparently had a brother. _It would have been nice to inform Naruto of that before he had to leave, but what's done is done._

He was continuing to ponder over Naruto's tragic life when his window suddenly came open with a burst of wind and fluster of the drapes. "What a drag," he said to himself.

He got up, closed the windows, and noticed the lock had been cut. Instinct told him there was nothing in his room, but it never hurt to be too careful. He discretely pulled out a kunai and turned around. He saw nothing so he relaxed a bit and went to sit on his bed.

Once he had turned to lie back down, he tensed at the sight of a cloaked figure in his window and another in the corner of his room. They wore black cloaks with red, white-trimmed clouds. "Akatsuki," he cursed.

"What do you want?" Shikamaru asked. His left hand was hidden behind him, secretly doing a hand sign.

The cloaked figure came out of the shadows of his room and his breath got stuck in his throat, justu forgotten.

"I want to know everything you know about my brother."

* * *

Fox blood, as the solution to all of his and Kyuubi's problems?

It was the reason for his power now, the reason he was a whole person for the first time since he came out of his mother's womb, and the reason he could avenge his family. It was the reason he could finally be happy.

He could certainly believe that it would solve the rest of their problems.

They travelled the rest of the day heading Northeast, with curiosity still running through Naruto's system. Naruto wanted to understand why he was in the place he was, so he questioned Kyuubi.

"Why do I look older?" Naruto had asked and Kyuubi had answered, explaining that they would not age past twenty years and that their ages balanced to find an average look. Naturally, Kyuubi would have looked twenty, so when their ages of twenty and twelve averaged out, they looked sixteen.

"Why did the council hate my brother and me so much?" Kyuubi explained that to the best of his ability. Kyuubi told Naruto that his father had wanted to change the way Fire Country went about relationships with other countries. Essentially, he was trying to prevent war from ever happening again. Kyuubi had heard that as a part of Minato's speech during his ceremony when he was chosen as Hokage.

The council did not like that idea because they would have no reason to be a part of Fire Country's leadership anymore. So when the Fourth died sealing the Kyuubi into Naruto, they felt relieved that he was gone. However, they began to see Ichirou as a threat. With his father's ideas, his personality and most certainly his skill, he was a legend at the age of fourteen. With Ichirou as Naruto's role model, Naruto drowning himself in his desire to transcend his brother, and the fact that Naruto had all of Kyuubi's chakra at his disposal, the two of them, as a team, would shadow the counsel and carry out their father's wishes.

So the council devised a plan to put out the small flame before it became a forest fire and hired the destroyed village's shinobi to kill his brother and him.

"Where was my family buried?" Kyuubi did not know that and apologized for his lack of knowledge. He could tell that Naruto wanted to visit their graves at some point.

"Where are we going?" Kyuubi said that they would be arriving there that evening and he would not speak the name until then.

"Why did you give me a katana when I have no experience with one?" Kyuubi explained that they were an elegant and efficient way for them to use their power. Waving an arm that would cause a burst of flames was less effective than a katana directing the blast into a controlled beam.

"Why did Itachi agree to kill his clan?" Kyuubi had stopped and thought about that question. He did not understand that scenario himself. He knew Itachi to be a good hearted person with eyes that saw everything. He would never be so cruel and evil, so he said there must have been a reason for him to do what he did and that if he was truly heartless he would have killed Sasuke as well.

"Why were you so mean to me when I was first being affected by your blood?" Kyuubi took on a grim look and felt awful for the way he had treated Naruto. To keep Naruto's trust, and avoid any further problems, he went with the truth.

Kyuubi said that he was irritated by Naruto because of how stupid he acted and for the way he disrespected him. He was angered that Naruto had been rude to him when he was the reason for Naruto's more peaceful life. Even though Kyuubi knew Naruto did not know, it still hurt him. He was caged inside of a host he had protected on countless occasions and said host did nothing but insult and use him so, naturally, Kyuubi wanted to make Naruto feel horrible.

But, it was also a healthy start to a new life. If Naruto had started out with a different attitude, it would have been disastrous for Konoha so Kyuubi had to depress him. He apologized for the cruelty, but said that it was necessary.

The last question Naruto asked was something Kyuubi wanted to avoid until later, but he had to answer it.

"Why did it feel so pleasant sleeping with you?" Both of them held a mild blush because of the question, Naruto more so than Kyuubi.

Kyuubi said that it would only be natural to be attracted to a being of the same species and that they were essentially two halves of the same whole. Their bodies and minds naturally affected the other in a positive way and that it was completely natural.

Naruto had flushed even further. His mind told him that is was wrong to feel that way about someone of the same sex, but his body and his heart's desire was steadily decomposing that thought. He was not human anymore so human morals did not apply, plus it was not healthy to deny your heart_. _Ignoring his heart was wrong and he knew he had feelings for Kyuubi, but there was no way he was going to admit it until Kyuubi admitted that he felt the same.

Kyuubi knew Naruto's feelings and wanted to see who would last longer denying their body's lusts.

After that last question was asked, they had travelled in silence and now they were walking in a unique system of rocks and caves.

The day's journey again was at an incredible pace and they were at the border between Lightning Country and Fire Country. It was an incredibly mountainous region far away from any civilization. It was now just before dark and light was getting scarce. The rain still fell, but now only gently.

Kyuubi walked in a narrow passageway with Naruto right behind him. The unique path had been created from the earth splitting apart. The passage was so narrow that if someone was on ground level, thirty feet above them they would be able to place their feet on either side of the small fissure and stare down it. The bottom was dark, damp and littered with leaves and twigs, making footing awkward at times, but they managed.

The walls were layered with bushy mosses and adjacent riveting lines stretching horizontally across the rock face from weaker layers of rock that had been affected by the elements. It was so narrow that their tails gently brushed against the sides as they walked.

The path wound around many curves, but never had a sharp turn. They walked along the path for a good twenty minutes before they came to a fork where the path widened a bit. The split went directly to the right and the left in a T-shape.

Kyuubi stopped directly in the middle of the fork and turned around to face Naruto who was still twenty feet behind him.

Naruto stopped where he was and looked at Kyuubi. His fox's ears twitched gently and his tails rustled a bit. His ruby red eyes no longer bore any anger and seemed to be soothed. Naruto thought that Kyuubi was beautiful, standing elegantly between the rocks that were as ancient as he was. The contrast between the grays, blues and greens of the stone and the reds, oranges and beiges of Kyuubi were in perfect harmony. The scene was amazing and breathtaking.

"This place is called Kitsune no Metsuki, the Fox's Sight, and it has been my home since I was born."

Kyuubi then turned to his right and walked down the left passage. Naruto followed. Once he was around the corner, he could see the naturally narrow hall end. The stone to his right ended and the stone to his left continued and curved gently out of sight. He saw a few of Kyuubi's tails wave out of sight right after he turned the corner.

Naruto, excited and anxious, walked down the rest of the small fissure and turned the corner. It was beautiful and charming. There was a marvelous and grand flat sprouting rooms over a wide calm pond. Small islands, large enough to hold a small Sakura tree, dotted the pond while an inviting bridge led into the main house. An old feeling of warmth and history dwelled within the place.

Naruto saw that the wall ended abruptly with a cliff. From what he could see, there was a magnificent view of the surrounding landscape and Kyuubi's home was in a random half moon carved out of the mountain side.

The ground he stood on was a gentle carpet of moss that calmly descended into the water for a few feet then dithered away into smooth rock. The water gently ran off the cliff's edge like the pool he had spent the previous night in. The pond was like al large and shallow bowl with its bottom directly under the house.

"Well, are you going to come in? This is your home too now," Kyuubi said from the doorway at the end of the wooden bridge. Naruto contemplated the idea of a home. When had he ever really felt at home? This place seemed so right though.

"Naruto, you are here not as a guest, but as a resident. This is your home. I know you feel that it is. This is no longer a question Of, being, Naruto, you Are, being."


	5. Unite & Reunite

What to say about Sinatra? His music is classic, elegant, upbeat and very clear. I could be in the foulest of moods and listening to him would make me feel better. My second favorite song is by him, and was written by Paul Anka, called My Way. I used _I've Got The World On A String_ for the last chapter because Naruto realizes just where he stands in the world. He has power, youth, and a heart. So I thought that song applied very well. Anyway on with the story. This chapter is the last before I do a time skip and this chapter in itself will have a bit of a time skip. I hope Shikamaru's situation was found to be rather intriguing. I don't own Naruto a Japanese genius does.

Caution: This chapter has YAOI lemon.

Chapter Five: Unite and Reunite

_Ah, he gave me more, he gave it all to me, say can't you see  
How can I tell you about my loved one?  
You'd think that people would have had enough of silly love songs.  
But I look around me and I see it isn't so. Oh, no  
Some people wanna fill the world with silly love songs.  
And what's wrong with that?_

_Silly Love Songs, Paul McCartney and the Wings, Wings at the Speed of Sound._

Shikamaru gazed out his bedroom window, despair and gloom soaking him to the core. The past couple of days were beyond comprehension; he did not mean to be arrogant, but he was sure that very few ninja had ever had to deal with what currently weighed down his shoulders.

Keeping the reason why Sasuke was found secret, keeping Naruto's lively hood secret, and now Ichirou's as well, keeping all of Kyuubi's actions in the village's leadership secret, were far to great for someone of his caliber to bear.

It seemed that with all the secrets that were revealed even more become hidden.

Undoubtedly there was an unwanted little orange guest sitting just outside his bedroom door with more information only he was to know. Opening his bedroom door he looked down to see the little fox with a scroll in it's mouth, staring back up at him.

He picked up the fox and walked back into his room. He set the little kit down on his bed and removed the scroll from it's mouth. The Fox kanji was printed nicely on the front and the area for blood to be smeared was clearly indicated.

Biting his thumb and smearing the blood over the outlined area, he sighed as he began to read the letter. Drifting along the text with his eyes, he groaned.

"Your more trouble gone, than you are here Naruto."

* * *

"So where is it that you would like to go?" Itachi asked as they walked down the moonlit river that flowed north.

"To see him." Ichirou responded, playing with the feather that tied his hair into a short tail. His eyes gleamed with a triumphant ambition. "It's been eight years, I can finally go and see him, my little brother." He shuddered a little with excitement.

A common love among the two was for their younger brothers. Itachi, god forbid had only made one miscalculation in his life, and that was the scar he left his brother with. He wanted Sasuke to be ambitious, with a desire to avenge, not to lust for power and revenge. It was a cruel fate that his one mistake was so great.

Ichirou was not fated as cruelly, but his father had been and it was his father's mistake that remained to haunt; that was the condition he left the council in. The council was going to kill his brother and him to extinguish a threat; apparently Ichirou blamed the council for his father's death so he was going to use Naruto's control over the Kyuubi to eradicate them.

That was the theory the council came up with so they had an excuse. In the end Ichirou planned with the Third a way for him and Naruto both to live. Ichirou would pretend to die and leave the village, so the council would not find Naruto to be a threat anymore. The plan ended with him almost being killed by Naruto no less and the Council still tried a few years later. A _half success _so the Third Hokage had put it, but it lead to Naruto's ultimate safety in Konoha.

"What is your suggestion towards finding him?" Itachi asked thinking of a plan himself.

"Kyuubi is a fox demon, apparently Naruto is now as well, foxes are mischievous intellectuals, so I would start by asking one of them." Ichirou suggested.

Their shadows remained on the water for a moment after their figures vanished.

Itachi was thinking the same thing and now the only issue was to find a fox. It was night so there would be little issue of finding one stalking around and it was also spring; the time when nature called loudly for reproduction.

* * *

A vast distance away Naruto was dealing with the same call.

It had been a few hours since they had arrived at Kyuubi house and Naruto thanked his curiosity for the distraction. There was only so much house to explore though and every time Naruto walked past something reflective he noticed the blue in his eyes was fading to an almost feral and lust filled gold.

After the sun had set small rotting pieces of wood flowed over the pond. A strange fungi grew on all the logs that released a calm, phosphorescent green light over the exterior of the flat. Looking at the edges of the cliffs that created the sanctuary holding Kyuubi's home the same fungi grew on all of the rotting trees. Kyuubi said that it was call foxfire.

All the rooms of the house had a view of what was beyond the cliff and they were all connected by bridges. It was styled very elegantly, with traditional Japanese architecture. Gold and Rubies were used where ever they could be, as a sign of Kyuubi's eyes and apparently Naruto's as well. Door handles, to the bridge railings were encrusted with the expensive and luxurious materials. It matched the pink of the Sakura trees very well and was in perfect contrast to the greens, grays, and blues that also surrounded the house.

When Naruto had first entered the home there was a main room that was simply an enclosed bridge circling around one of the small islands, growing another Sakura tree. It was a very charming entrance, there was a wall and roof that made it seem like a room and no railing around the part that opened to the water surrounding the island and the ceiling only covered where the floor went, so the tree would be exposed to the sun. For once in his life, he felt welcome.

He was then lead around the railing-less room and out the walk way opposite of where he entered. After another bridge he entered a living room that greatly embraced the magnificent view. You could see forever, it was far better then watching television or reading some manga. Mountains and valleys stretched over the view as he watched the sun set off to the right just below the clearing rain clouds, forests and rivers wound around each-other and the air was more clear than any. It was an endless masterpiece of nature.

After seeing the living room he was lead out the right of the room across another bridge that split into three going left, straight and right. Kyuubi lead him to the left, the room he found to be closest to the cliff.

The room also embraced the view with no wall concealing what faced over the cliff. A terrace with an over hang accented the view very nicely and allowed access to one of the larger Sakura Islands. A few harsh and ragged desert plants were growing in planters on the terrace that supplied an unusual, but beautiful contrast to the soft Sakura trees. Kyuubi said that the room would be his room and the other door would lead to his own on-suite.

After Kyuubi showed him how to unseal the belongings he had stored Naruto went to decorating his room. It did not take long, from how little there was, but he was happy to have a picture of his team and some items to help him reminisce about the few good times in his life.

And now here he was exploring the rest of his new home trying to ignore the potent smell of fresh earth, rose water, and salty blood that came from Kyuubi. He wanted to ravish the fox-boy so badly the only way to keep himself controlled was by staying on the opposite side of the house. Ever since the sun had began to set he felt exceptionally excited.

With the excitement, he felt that it was wrong for him to lust for Kyuubi so greatly; the issues were countless.

One, was that Kyuubi was male; Naruto had nothing against homosexuality, but his bravado he felt was tainted by the lust and it had always been a large part of who he was. He was the tough guy with hard skin. The fact that they were not human did little to comfort him.

Two, was the love he still held for Sakura; he felt that he was betraying her if he loved Kyuubi and he felt even worse because the care he had for the topic was fading. He was in love with her, but the more time that past he felt it was just some immature childhood crush. He knew her well and realized that he was treated more like an annoying little brother than anything.

Three, was that he was incredibly young; the demon was almost a thousand times his age with endless knowledge and he was still a naïve child. For a being of power and knowledge and a being of feral behavior and ignorance to clash in a game of love was just silly.

Fourth, and most important, was that he hardly knew Kyuubi; to have a pure desire to love someone whom you knew nothing about was immature and pathetic. He was ashamed to conceive it, but it reminded him of Sakura's love for Sasuke.

* * *

The rest of the house consisted of a steam room, a vast and ancient library, an elegant kitchen, a formal dining room, a small dojo, a rock garden on the largest of the Sakura Islands, Kyuubi's bedroom, two large spare bedrooms, a small bathroom off the living room, and a weapons room. It was laid out very well, with the rooms in proper conjunction to each-other and had a very relaxing and classy feel.

The bedrooms where what took up the right side of the pond and everything else took up the left. All in all, Naruto thought it was going to be a wonderful place to live if nature would stop screaming to his loins and heart about something he was unsure of.

He tried denying his feelings for Kyuubi and occasionally would orally express the sentiment as he wondered around the other half of the house. With all his reasoning against a relationship with Kyuubi he felt he was just making excuses, since when did he care what people of thought of his sexuality, why should he worry about Sakura when she never returned the emotion, he was immortal now he had the time to catch up to Kyuubi and with all that time he could easily get to know the fox.

Kyuubi kept him ignorant of the horrors in his life so he would remain innocent and had given his own blood to give Naruto the strength to avenge. He gave Naruto his true being for the first time in his life and was the reason Naruto was free to be happy. He showed genuine concern and care for someone who was usually treated in the opposite and harsh fashion.

What reason was there not to love him?

* * *

Kyuubi was sitting in the living room meditating or what appeared to be. He could hear Naruto's thoughts echoing through his head and had a wild grin on his face.

_**Will you shut up and just talk to me about it. We can't ignore nature forever Naruto, it's more powerful than your will, **_Kyuubi interrupted his ranting.

_I want to know right now, how you keep me out of your head, _Naruto replied trying to change the subject.

_**I'm not telling you until you come in here and talk to me about this first, **_Kyuubi answered.

_You know exactly why I cannot come in there, _Naruto thought, anger beaming through his mind.

_**I'm going to need to tell you this a thousand times aren't I? Naruto just follow your instincts, they will never lead you wrong. **_

_**They killed my brother, **_Naruto's thoughts took on the same deep tone Kyuubi's did as they echoed through Kyuubi's head.

_**Naruto understand this, the only time your instincts will lead to trouble is when you are hungry. You were not a demon when that happened, you were simply influenced by my chakra. There was no hunger. You thought the Hokage had betrayed your brother and you, so you attacked him. Your brother defended the Hokage which is where it all went down hill. That was a situation composed purely of bad luck, **_Kyuubi assured Naruto.

_**Now will you come in here and just help me deal with the situation. I'm having a hard time dealing with this myself,**_ Kyuubi thought. _**You smell like fresh rain, sweet blood, and grass, it's driving me crazy**_.

Naruto almost reluctantly began the short journey confused about smelling like sweet blood. He had no choice but to believe everything Kyuubi said, because he had yet to be incorrect and everything Kyuubi had ever told him to do had made his life better. From his childhood to the present, so why change his direction now.

He entered the living room a minute later and breathed through his mouth; Kyuubi, funny enough, did the same.

"So, how are we supposed to go about something like this? Your over ten millennia old and I'm twelve so, you start," Naruto said sitting down rather far away from Kyuubi.

"There is no planning nature Naruto, it just happens. Once I am done talking we are going to let go and simply follow what our bodies desire. I personally have not had much experience with something like this because there has never been another fox demon out there. Understand that I am as new to this as you are okay."

_Just great,_ Naruto thought as he waited anxiously for Kyuubi to finish.

"Now on three we just let go okay, just follow your instincts." Kyuubi took a deep breathe. "One…Two…Thr–" Naruto was on top of Kyuubi's lithe form before he could finish. His mouth was plastered to the fox's mouth and golden tails intertwining with Kyuubi's crimson appendages. Kyuubi gasped not a moment later and Naruto took that opportunity to slip his tongue in and feel the prominent canines that lines Kyuubi's mouth. It was surreal and blurred, but it felt more right than the sun lighting the day.

Kyuubi mewled into the kiss as they rolled on the floor. It was already clear that Kyuubi was going to be the Uke. Naruto had more power and was more feral than Kyuubi was, so naturally the first time he would lead.

As they rolled on the floor Naruto wrapped one of his arms around Kyuubi's chest and reached his other arm up to the fox's red hair. The kiss was pure and their chakras mingled with each other tangling them together more than their tails. It was after a minute that air made itself known to be a necessity.

While they broke apart to breath one thought mutually ran through both their minds, _**Bedroom.**_ Naruto was already on top so he gave Kyuubi another kiss and lifted him up and dashed out of the luxurious living room. Once he was at the part where the bridges divided he again dashed left towards his room.

Once they were inside the room Naruto place Kyuubi on the bed hastily and began to try stripping him. Kyuubi almost laughed at his efforts and lifted Naruto's chin directing the teen's attention to his face. Kyuubi brought his other hand up and snapped his fingers. In a quick burst of harmless flames Kyuubi was nude. Naruto quickly followed suit by doing the same.

He again leaned over Kyuubi kissing him deeply and passionately. The crooks of their lithe and maturing bodies laid well with each other and brought a never before felt warmth to their hearts. Their lower regions grew with the friction and gently ground into each other. It continued like that until the need for air once-again made itself aware. They broke apart and Kyuubi slid himself up to allow Naruto to enter him as he wrapped his legs around the boy's waist.

Naruto was mildly confused at to what the gesture meant at first. A morbid memory made it's way into his head from just a few nights prior and because of that he knew that he would hurt Kyuubi if he entered dry. He tried to think of a solution quickly before he did it anyway. "The Aloe Vera plant." Kyuubi suggested, pointing to the small plant in the corner of the room with a clawed finger. Naruto's image disappeared for a moment before returning to his previous position with one of the plants barbed leaves in hand. It happened so fast gravity hadn't the time to lower Kyuubi's limbs.

Naruto squeezed the plant over himself and Kyuubi's entrance. He spread it around, coating himself and Kyuubi, then threw the plant out the open terrace so fast it skipped across the water and right over the edge of the cliff; however, before it even skipped once Naruto had already sheathed himself.

A wave of ecstasy washed over both of them; nothing could compare to how right they felt. All their worries, all their pains, all their stresses were gone just like the Aloe Vera leaf. The gentle light the room's lanterns cast, the luxurious style that emanated from every object surrounding them, and the softly foxfire lit Sakura tree just outside the room in all their grace, could not mirror the warmth and peace that pulsed through Naruto and Kyuubi. It was a moment of absolute serenity.

Naruto pulled back slowly allowing the Aloe Vera to coat Kyuubi's insides. He was on the verge of just letting go and thrusting in and out of Kyuubi as fast as he could. The ringed muscles enclosed him without any complaint and the feeling was incomprehensible. An almost too week sense of calm supplied his patience though, allowing him to let Kyuubi become accustom to the intrusion.

He sunk back in to his hilt causing Kyuubi to gasp from pleasure and release a wave of chakra. He repeated the motion over and over again doing his best to hit the same spot as he tried to stretch Kyuubi. He loved the feeling of Kyuubi's chakra wash over him every time he struck the area, with every touch Kyuubi would lose control of his chakra and release it in a massive wave of pleasure.

Kyuubi, as a playful gesture to make Naruto move faster, bit his ear as Naruto thrust into him. Naruto gave him a questioning look with his gold-slit and hazy eyes. When he gave Kyuubi the naive and innocent look, his ear was dragged down by Kyuubi's mouth as he tried to make better eye contact. "Faster," Kyuubi ground out as held Naruto's ear in his fangs. His own ears were flattened on his head creating mild friction to the sensitive spot of where they folded.

Naruto complied with his demand and sped up his pace. Kyuubi let go of Naruto's ear and began scratching the same sensitive fold, while using his other arm to hold onto Naruto. A deep purr escaped Naruto as Kyuubi scratched his ears, the skin was tough enough not to be split by the powerful claw and because of it's endurance it was even more sensitive to the touch. As he moved his ears would wave forward and Kyuubi would scratch in rhythm.

Naruto used one of his hands to stroke Kyuubi with hopes of furthering his pleasure. Breathing was all that was heard with the occasional squelching noise from Naruto and Kyuubi's nether-regions. It lasted for another few minutes until one final thrust from Naruto hit Kyuubi's prostate and Kyuubi released himself. Not two thrusts later Naruto did the same from Kyuubi's contracting muscles and released deep inside of Kyuubi.

They stayed like that for a moment before they sunk into each other for another kiss.

Normal and rational thought suddenly flooded Naruto's mine. Once they broke apart Naruto sheepishly, stated, "Sorry." He pulled out of Kyuubi not a moment later and looked away in shame. One of his ears wilted a little with his lack of confidence and his now blue eyes gazed at anything that was not Kyuubi.

He was unsure of what to say or do after something so personal. In all his life no-one had ever embraced him or kissed him and now all of a sudden to have someone so perfect and caring thrust into his life, he lacked the experience to know how to react.

Kyuubi turned Naruto's chin gently to face him again. Naruto continued to avoid his gaze. "Don't be. We followed what nature told us and we both enjoyed it. It was meant to be this way. Now let us get cleaned up." Naruto's confidence returned with the few reassuring words and he kissed Kyuubi again.

He pulled Kyuubi out of his bed and started to drag him towards his bathroom, when he got an idea. "I was thinking the same thing," Kyuubi said as the idea echoed through his mind. Naruto turned and dragged him towards the terrace. He stepped onto the Sakura Island in front of his room holding Kyuubi's hand behind him. Kyuubi followed after and they gently slide into the dark water.

They both remained silent for a moment before Naruto weakly and nervously said, "I'm not sure if this is the…uhh right thing to say, but I guess I…love…you?"

Kyuubi was momentarily stunned by the words, he thought Naruto would feel too awkward after something like that to speak to him. Certainly he had helped make him comfortable with his assuring words, but for Naruto to confess such an emotion and to come to terms with it so quickly was an unusual feat. It was a strange relationship, but it felt right and proper. So Kyuubi returned the words with caring hug. Naruto was surprised by his reaction and enjoyed Kyuubi's surprisingly soft, spiky red hair on his shoulder. It felt so gentle and care free. Kyuubi's pointed ear tilted into his own when he said, "It means more than you know Naruto. I love you as well."

They swam in silence embracing the scenery occasionally bumping into one of the foxfire logs while holding hands under the water. "Why is it so warm here even when it's winter?" Naruto asked to make small conversation.

"Well, this mountain was once an active super volcano. It erupted one spring with such power and ferocity that it exploded into an ash cloud so enormous the earth's climate was unusual for a few decades afterwards. Acid rain and no sun light destroyed all life within hundreds of miles which is the reason this place has become so remote and far away from any civilization. And because of it's eruption it became dormant, which means there haven't been any signs of it erupting in the next couple hundred thousand years. Magma still runs through the mountain though and that keeps the earth warm, which is why it is so pleasant hear even during winter." Kyuubi answered.

He furthered his answer by explaining why it was called Kitsune no Metsuki, the Fox's Sight, "Occasionally dark red clouds of smoke are released from it's peak in the shape of a fox. You can see forever from the peak and that's why it is call the Fox's Sight."

As an after thought Kyuubi tossed in, "It was that eruption which gave birth to me and the eruption itself was called 'The FoxFire.'"

Naruto was confused by how Kyuubi could just come to exist from a volcanic eruption, but given recent events he could believe the story.

Soon they left the water and finished cleaning up in the steam room. It was calm and quiet with the occasional snicker from Kyuubi when Naruto couldn't dry his ears without them twitching out of his grasp. After they were dressed Kyuubi took Naruto to the library and selected a few scrolls for him to read. Kyuubi spent the rest of the night answering Naruto's questions regarding the scrolls he read.

Before the sun appeared from the left of their masterpiece view, Naruto and Kyuubi were laying in their individual rooms sifting through recent events as they drifted off to sleep.

The following couple of nights were peaceful as Naruto settled into the new lifestyle. They spent much of their time together except for sleep if they did sleep, Naruto learning the ways of a fox demon, essentially his place among the world now and Kyuubi almost berated into him the importance of discreteness with his power. "You only ever should be just above someone's level of power and skill when you fight them. If people knew that you could destroy mountains and drown civilizations, people would seek you out and try taking your power. Only Madara and perhaps a few others in this world actually have the ability, but that is still to many. Lead people to believe your powerful, but not beyond comprehension." Kyuubi said that this patience and discipline would make him an unstoppable force and a being of graceful modesty.

Kyuubi also explained to him what all the planning and hiding was for, and the reason Naruto would have to learn to control his power. Kyuubi was going to use the Akatsuki to become a whole being again.

Madara had created the organization with the desire to seal away all the Bijuu and use their power to manipulate the world. Kyuubi had a plan of using Madara's own goals against him. Once Madara had all the beasts, Kyuubi was going to reseal them into himself and become a whole being again.

Kyuubi was a master at infiltration and learning secrets, so in the short time he had investigated the organization before he was used to destroy Konoha, he learned what it was that Madara was planning to do. The man's goal was to recreate the Jubi and seal it within himself to become the second Jubi Jinchuriki.

And Kyuubi, was not going to let that happen.

* * *

"We're getting close." Ichirou said looking back over his shoulder at Itachi as they cautiously walked down the narrow path. Itachi replied with a nod and continued to follow. They both had previously commented on the unusual warmth for the time of year, especially in such a northern and remote place, but what alarmed them the most was the amount of chakra in the air.

Something Ichirou was afraid to speak of was the weak feeling that was slowly overtaking him while the chakra continued to intensify as they travelled. His skin was cold and almost brittle, while on the inside he felt like he was simmering in an intense heat. It had been two hours since they could sense the chakra and ever since Ichirou was embraced by the ocean of power, he felt the strange frigidness and heat. His state of health did not redirect him however, the devotion for his little brother pushed him forward.

It was another ten or so minutes before Ichirou really began to be concerned by the feeling. He was a very reserved and calm Shinobi when he was focussed, who never let any emotions distort his facial features, so it wasn't emotions that Itachi had taken note of when he said, "We should stop. Your going through something, that I am clearly not." Ichirou's ears were tapering and his fingernails were dull claws.

Ichirou calmly looked back at him and yet another feature made itself apparent. Ichirou's eyes were no longer their usual sapphire blue, but an elegant and feral red with narrow pupils. "What are you talking abo–COUGH COUGH!" He loudly wheezed then suddenly fell to the ground from pain. Itachi was by his side not a moment later checking him over for any injuries.

His face was scrunched up in a painful expression, teeth hissing at the pain, revealing slowly growing canines. _What the hell is wrong with me? _Was Ichirou's last thought before he blacked out.

Itachi was confused and worried, but kept himself composed. He lifted Ichirou up and continued down the narrow passage knowing that his companion and mentor would wish to continue; however, after only a few steps someone appeared before him in a flash of fire.

* * *

It had been Naruto's sixth day at Kyuubi's home when he suddenly woke from a strain on his nearly endless amount of chakra. He felt as though he was performing a vast number of extremely demanding Jutsus that were using incredible amounts of chakra. His breathe was staggered and a cold sweat had built up on his forehead.

Naruto's state greatly concerned Kyuubi and after twenty minutes of the strain only increasing, Kyuubi had come to his bedroom with a glass of blood and practically poured it down Naruto's throat. After that had been done Naruto felt less strained and no longer sweat, but the drain on his chakra still remained.

It continued to build, but was far less exhausting than before Naruto had ingested Kyuubi's blood. Right before the two hour mark hit it weakened by a considerable amount and they both were relieved. That lasted until loud coughing echoed from the narrow passage entering the crescent flat and Naruto passed out.

_**Who ever that was, is causing this and they must be very skilled for me not to have sensed them. **_Kyuubi thought as he sealed Naruto's room to prevent anyone from entering. He left a clone in Naruto's room as a secondary precaution and dashed for the narrow passage.

In a flash of fire he vanished.

* * *

Blood.

The essence of unconditional love. A binding care for one of the same nature. What happens when blood obtains a consciousness of it's own? When is becomes aware of it's brothers and sisters?

For blood to become enlightened it has to travel through the veins of someone familiar. As time passes this familiar person, their essence will become another aspect of the blood. Then the blood has to be run through the veins of whom it first came from, only then will it be changed.

And when it becomes aware of others, of it's relatives it will wish to change them as well. That is the one of the natures of fox blood.

* * *

His heart pumped blood carelessly through his throbbing skull, the tendons holding up his head pulsed with pain whenever the slightly dense liquid flowed around them. An uncomfortable sleep makes for an unpleasant mood and this was the unfortunate state for Naruto when he came to.

He gently opened his eyes to adjust to the light and looked around his luxurious room, it was morning an odd time for him to wake up. Kyuubi sat in a chair directly in front of his bed looking at him with concern, "Unpredictable as usual and what caused this turn of events is even more peculiar." Naruto was confused and the expression formed it's way onto his face.

"You have been in a strange sleep for the past two weeks. You did something that normally takes ten months, in two hours," Kyuubi explained.

"And what might that be?" Naruto asked wincing as his voice sent vibrations throughout his aching head.

Kyuubi stood up casually, "Come for a walk with me first."

Naruto did not argue he just got up and summoned his clothing very carefully and was surprised that his headache was beginning to fade. They left the elegant room and Kyuubi led him to the front of the house. They travelled in silence back into the stone passage and ignored the entrance they came from and continued straight down what was the right path from the T-shaped intersection. The stone walls began to take on a purple and blue hue as they travelled.

Naruto interrupted the silence after his patience had come to a calm end, "What was it that I did and where are we going?"

Kyuubi just looked over his shoulder and gave Naruto a knowing smirk, "You'll see when we get there."

The path began to descend and wind strangely, the height of the stone walls shallowed and more scenery came into view. During one of the rather sharp left curves Naruto could see where Kyuubi's house was situated because of the gauge out of the cliff and the gentle waterfall flowing over the edge. The house itself was hidden because of the angle, but it was easy to understand where the beautiful flat was and even with the descent in altitude the view remained nether worldly.

The stone passage opened up not long after to a very large shrine. The curved roof accented the square pond that surrounded the square structure very nicely. From pillar to pillar cream-colored curtains gently rustled in the wind obscuring what ever was in the shrine. The flat plot of land was shaped by a wall of stone that extended for almost break neck heights to the left and a curved cliff, similar to that of where Kyuubi's house was lining the right and framing the temple beautifully. A variety of chakra signatures made themselves known once they had come out of the rock passage. Two, Naruto recognized, but could not fathom, some others he could not recognize, but one stood out; it was familiar and comforting to him. Another thing he could not understand was it's similarity to his and Kyuubi's chakra.

"What is this place?" Naruto asked instinctively sniffing the air. The scent that invaded his nose was familiar as well, but his mind could not place the scent.

"This is the shrine to the Fox. Go look, someone is waiting for you."

Naruto gave him a skeptical look before walking towards the shrine. Stepping down the stone slab stairs and over the glimmering quarts slab that made a thin bridge over the pond he pushed away the curtains and stopped breathing.

"Sasuke? Shikamaru?" He gasped out. The next person he saw confused him even more and slightly angered him. "Itachi?" There was also a woman with deep blue, almost violet hair dressed with an origami flower, and a man with vibrant orange hair and multiple piercings lining his face, he also had the strangest eyes Naruto had ever seen, they had various circles surrounding the pupil and where almost hypnotic. They were both dressed in Akatsuki cloaks along with Itachi.

The possible threat the Akatsuki members posed did not intimidate him, he felt more than confident that Kyuubi and him could handle them if it was necessary. The thought was a mild arrogance, but Naruto had good intentions.

Everyone was looking at him with a variety of expressions. Sasuke's face was surprised, Shikamaru was indifferent as usual, Itachi gently smiled, the blue haired woman also smiled and the orange haired man gave him a curt and polite nod.

A voice broke out from behind the group, it sounded hoarse as though the person had just woken up. "Who's there?"

Naruto's heart was about to jump out of his chest when Kyuubi put a hand on his shoulder and gestured for him to go. The group of people moved away and reveal a bed. The occupant gently leaned up and stared at Naruto. His deep blue eyes shocked and expressing an emotion beyond that of happiness.

"Naruto."

Naruto was utterly speechless. In the matter of what seemed to him to be only a week, his entire life had been shattered, his biggest goal in life became an impossible feat, but in that same week, a new life had been forged for him, one with friends, and now with family, and another, greater goal.

Ichirou's physical appearance for the most part went ignored by Naruto as he ran to the young man hugging him deeply. Ichirou returned the embrace with a pure and genuine smile gracing his face. He closed his eyes gently and thanked god as he held Naruto close. It was a reunion of blood and family.

After a moment he opened his eyes and they landed on Kyuubi who stood in the background of the few people talking. Kyuubi gave him a mischievous and foxy smile then turned heading back up to his luxurious flat.

_So knowing, _Ichirou thought. The fox had protected his brother far more than anyone had and was the one who brought his brother to peace. Ichirou felt he owed a debt to the fox and voiced his gratitude in the time Naruto had been asleep. He was in no shape to do much, but felt he had to inform the fox of how greatly he thought of Kyuubi's actions. He was surprised to hear that Kyuubi desired nothing and that his reward was simply people in his life. Ichirou would forever feel as though he owed his life to Kyuubi.

"H-how?" Whispered Naruto after leaning back staring at his brother. It was the only speech he was capable of from such surprise. He had just noticed the deep red, black tipped fox ears that laid on top of Ichirou's spiky-haired head, incredibly similar to Kyuubi's. His eyes were still the deep blue he remembered, but with the fox-slit pupils. One bushy, red, cream tipped tail wagged unconsciously behind the twenty-two year old.

"Well, long story short, your chakra recognized my blood as family so attached itself to my chakra and changed me. You should know how painful it was," Ichirou said smiling down at his little brother.

"But-but? How are you alive?" Naruto stammered out.

"Well, thats a long story to." Ichirou answered.

"And why are Shikamaru and Sasuke here. And why isn't Sasuke attacking Itachi. And who are the other two? Why are there Akatsuki here?"

"Wow wow, hold on a second there," Ichirou laughed. "Well, Kyuubi told Shikamaru to come here and bring Sasuke and I don't know why before you ask. Why Sasuke isn't attacking Itachi is their business and another long story so ask them later. And the other two are Konan and Pien. They work with Itachi and I in Akatsuki."

Naruto paused to let what Ichirou said to sink in, "Wait! Your a member of Akatsuki? Your a criminal!"

He was beginning to panic. The thought of his brother being a member of the organization that was out to manipulate Kyuubi was a horror beyond that of his past. If his brother were to become a threat, he felt that he would not be able to do what was necessary. To realize that he had a sibling was a shock, but to now see him alive and breathing, to see blood and kin, to see the other fruit his father's loins bore was beyond anything. But if his brother was really a criminal, a member of Akatsuki, a true traitor to Konoha and threatened his friends, he would not be willing enough to kill Ichirou after a living a life where he thought he was alone.

Reading the horror on Naruto's face like a children's book led Ichirou to say, "Hold on a second there Naru. We are members of Akatsuki yes, but we are a part of the organization to be close to Madara and watch his actions. Pein over there," He said gesturing to the vibrantly hair colored man, "is currently the closest person to Madara and the man does not even suspect Pein to be a traitor. So do not worry, we are apart of the group to aid in the elimination of the threat that is Madara."

The speech's emotion was a mixture of care for Naruto and the stern Shinobi Ichirou was. It settled Naruto and he just hugged Ichirou again.

The reunion was interrupted by Shikamaru, "Okay now that we are all here, I'm pretty sure that everyone has some questioning and explaining to do. Naruto would you mind telling Kyuubi to come back down here?"

"Why don't we all just go back up to the house?" Naruto suggested. "I'm kind of hungry," Again Naruto forgot just what it was that he would need to eat.

_**I'll be back in a moment Naruto I have to go and get something and stop forgetting what you have to eat, **_Kyuubi chimed in.

"Naruto, you do remember what you have to eat right?" Ichirou seemed to play off of Kyuubi's thoughts.

"Oh, whoops." He sheepishly grinned, "It's the only thing I can't seem to get my head to wrap around."

Sasuke chose this moment to voice his thoughts, "I may not know what he has to eat, but as usual the moron forgets everything."

"What was that?" Naruto injected angrily.

"So those ears are only for show then?" Sasuke taunted.

Itachi interrupted the childish argument, "I apologize for my brother's behavior, he is not in a very pleasant mood right now."

"For your information, _Sasuke, _it's blood that I have to eat. Don't think that just because your brother is here that I will not attack you."

"Naruto just leave it alone, Sasuke has had a rough past couple of weeks," Ichirou tried to soothe.

"Big words let's see if you can back them–" Before Sasuke could finish his sentence he felt a Katana pressed against his neck.

"These ears and these tails aren't just for show Sasuke." Naruto said in his ear.

"Enough," Came the soothing and elegant voice of Kyuubi as he appeared before them in a flash of fire. "Naruto remove your sword, don't let words get a rise out of you and Sasuke do not provoke him, especially when he is hungry."

Naruto lowered his katana with a glare directed at Sasuke. He stepped back and faced Kyuubi.

"You all have questions that certainly border on the same reason for curiosity. So I will start with explaining why Sasuke and Shikamaru are here." Kyuubi snapped his fingers and draping over his arm appeared a number of gold and red cloaks. Upon a closer look at the cloaks one would see a dark-grey silk inlay, with pockets stitched in the most ergonomic place. The exterior was mostly a deep gold with dark red embroidering.

"I plan on creating an organization with a goal to end Akatsuki or more specifically Madara. An organization that will aid in the prevention of future wars, domestic and national. I, in essence want this group to be the medium that will house the issues countries and groups have with each other. This group will be Chuukaibutsu."

He looked towards Shikamaru, "Shikamaru, you have exceptional tactical skills, you plan things out so quickly and so well that you are capable of fighting on par with Shinobi far beyond your level of skill. I have deduced this over the past few weeks with how you dealt with Naruto's situation, the planning you made with Tsunadai regarding Naruto, and how you got yourself and Sasuke out here without much suspicion. You I want as an asset to this group as the strategist, everything that members learn they will inform you of."

Then he turned his eyes to Sasuke, "Sasuke, your eyes have the potential to surpass your brothers and even Madara's, not to mention that your overall skill is beyond exceptional for your age. I know this because of your recent and rather dramatic battle with Naruto and from previous quandaries Naruto has had with you. I want you as a member because of your potential of being able to fight on the same plane as Madara."

He continued to speak looking at whom ever he mentioned, "Ichirou Namikaze and Itachi Uchiha your unexpected arrival two weeks ago, combined with the fact that Ichirou is now a fox demon like Naruto and myself is a wonderful addition. You both are exceptionally skilled and powerful, although Ichirou is going to need some lessons with how to control his power much like Naruto."

"Pain, you are a possessor of the Rinnigan, the most powerful Dojutsu and blood-line in the world, you are exceptionally close to Madara and he does not suspect you to be a traitor. You are an addition that is critical to knowing what Madara plans and currently the most powerful Shinobi in the world with those eyes."

"Konan, you excel in a unique justu of your own creation, using origami manipulation. You are also very skilled and are brilliant at spying using your manipulation of paper. All together we have eight members, including Naruto and myself."

He then held up the cloaks on his arm, "These are what you will wear when going on a mission that Chuukaibutsu has requested of you. They have the alias that you have chosen embroidered on the back, just above the name of our organization." He then gave one to each of the new members, except for Pain, whom he gave seven to and Naruto and himself did not receive any at all.

"Where is mine?" Naruto asked.

"Back up at the house waiting for you to compose an alias. Now one thing that should be known about these cloaks, I do not plan to direct a group that can crack under pressure from an interrogator so when these cloaks are removed you have no memory of being a member of Chuukaibutsu. A fox will appear to take them when you are finished and when you are needed a fox will appear and offer you the cloak and your memories will return, it is as simple as that. Now everyone except Naruto please travel up the path to mine and Naruto's home." They did as Naruto held his tongue rather impatient and slightly angry that he had been left out of the loop for so long, albeit unconsciously.

Once all the members were out of ear shot, except for Ichirou with his new vulpine ears, Kyuubi spoke, "I have a little bit of news regarding our actions a few weeks ago."

Naruto gave him a look that demanded a clearer answer, "And what is this news. I'm getting tired of having all this information dropped on me at that last moment."

"Well, this is ten months in the making so it's not last minute and it's, again, been caused by the fact that we aren't human."

Naruto continued to give him a demanding glare, "Yeah."

Kyuubi's face began to show signs of anxiety and unease. Oh this can't be good, Naruto thought, as a few ideas ran through his head. Non of which were what had actually taken place.

"In nine and a half months I'm going to bear a child and your the father."


End file.
